


The Hotness Factor

by HotaruZala



Category: Gundam SEED, Gundam SEED Destiny
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-15
Updated: 2014-11-15
Packaged: 2018-02-25 10:18:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 23,130
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2618270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HotaruZala/pseuds/HotaruZala
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cagalli takes a quiz in one of Lacus's magazines and leaves the magazine wide open on her desk. Athrun walks in while she is at a meeting and reads what she wrote about him...and he is anything but ecstatic. What's a poor Coordinator to do?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Quiz

**Author's Note:**

> Written several years ago just for fun. XD

-Country of Orb, May 14th CE 74. Location: Athha Estate. Time: 4pm - 

Cagalli Yula Athha sat slumped over her mahogany desk after a long and grueling meeting. Holding her hand against her aching forehead, she heaved a heavy sigh: “Why do these councilmen always have to lay into me about every goddamn thing I do? I swear...I can't even breath without them questioning why.” She slowly eased herself out of her comfortable desk chair and paced back and forth across the room in thinking mode as she was accustomed to do before the dreaded second meeting the next day. She noticed one of Lacus's magazines on the coffee table, picked it up, and began to absentmindedly flip through it as she seated herself back at her desk. Her amber eyes remained transfixed on the page Lacus had dogeared to read later on. It just so happened to be one of those girly quizzes Cagalli despised. However, this quiz was a little different. The quiz in question read as follows:

“How Hot Is Your Man & How Good Is He At Seducing You?” 

Cagalli snickered and she shook her head as she imagined her brother trying to seduce a woman. Kira was always so shy and often times, a quite introverted individual, but meeting the pink haired songstress Lacus Clyne seemed to draw out the person that he had been keeping locked inside. Cagalli smiled at that thought and proceeded to read the quiz to herself. 

Question One: What kind of lover is your man? a. sweet and gentle, b. playful, c. rough, d. quiet

Cagalli felt her face burn bright red, not just from imagining what Lacus's answer might be, but from what her own selfish answer might be in regards to one Athrun Zala would be. Not sure what the quiz meant by quiet, Cagalli marked that since Athrun was also shy...but more introverted than shy really. He wasn't really the type to scream out her name in public let alone in private. 

Question Two: Is he more spontaneous than you? Yes or No? & Explain why. 

Cagalli chuckled and shook her head as she thought and then wrote: “No way in hell he's more spontaneous than me! I'm always the first to say or do something.” With that mental note, she marked No in the book. 

Question Three: What kind of dresser is he? a. sharp, b. conservative, c. casual& cool, d. sloppy, e. slightly sharp but with room for improvement 

Cagalli had to admit...the older the blue-haired Coordinator got, the better he began to dress. She thought about what he wore at the meeting today...which was the standard Orb uniform for officers. She had found her eyes, on a number of occasions; wandering over to him during said meeting. If there was one thought she always kept to herself, it was this: Nobody could ever look more deliciously gorgeous than Athrun Zala in uniform...or even in anything he chose to put on in the morning. It seemed Athrun's budding unique style, unbeknownst to him; was appearing to win over a lot of female attention and with that attention came the fan girls. Cagalli blushed slightly, then shook her head to get rid of the naughty thoughts, and marked down: e. slightly sharp. 

Question Four: How romantic is he? Ex: Does he know your favorite food, flower, song, and can he dance to said song? 

Cagalli shook her head and thought: “Well...no way he knows my favorite song. I'm not even sure he knows how to dance since he's never accompanied me to one of those stupid formals. I may have mentioned my favorite flower, but lord knows if he was even paying attention at that time. She marked no for all of these except the food one, which she marked yes because he'd bought her lunch and dinner a few times and knew her favorite foods to be donel kebabs with chili sauce and chocolate cake for dessert. The overall answer to that question left poor Athrun looking more like a food delivery boy than a romantic figure. Cagalli shrugged and sighed to herself: “Oh well...it's not like he's gonna read this.” 

Question Five: Is it easy to seduce you? 

Cagalli snickered defiantly and marked NO along with an explanation: “No way. If he is gonna try and seduce me he's got a lot of work ahead of him.” 

Question Six: How good of a kisser is he? a. hot, b. sweet, c. good, d. sweet and hot but with room for improvement

Cagalli picked d. and then explained her reason for doing so as follows: “Since it has been over a year since we last kissed. I have no idea what kind of kisser he is anymore.” 

Question Seven: What are his best features? Check all that apply. 

Cagalli felt her face heat up and turn slightly red as she checked off: hair, eyes, laugh, personality...and then she turned even redder when she instinctively checked off...ass. She brushed more naughty thoughts out of her head as she murmured under her breath: “Thank god Kira isn't seeing this.” She was also about to check off the abs choice as well, but then realized she'd never seen Athrun shirtless other than that one time when she was patching up a wound he'd gotten, so she had no idea how his abs looked, though she did know he had a nice body..she knew it deep down in the back of her mind that he did. So, content with the answers she had chosen, she moved on to the next question. 

Question Eight: Where would you want him to make out with you the most? 

Cagalli turned beet red again as she shook even more suggestive thoughts out of her head. She thought: “Isn't that sort of like the spontaneous question?...Oh well...hmmm...” She scratched her head as she was in thinking mode and then checked off the “office” choice. She sighed heavily: “Yeah right, like that would ever happen...that sounds more like something that would happen in a movie.” 

Question Nine: Where do you fantasize him making love to you? And, without being too explicit; how? 

This question caused the golden haired goddess of victory to nearly fall out of her chair and her face to flush yet again. She had, deep within the confines of her subconscious mind; had fantasized exactly what she desired from Athrun in this sense. She took a deep breath to calm herself and began to write: “I'd like to go back to where we first met because those are where some of our most fondest memories are. I think he'd be gentle and teasing at first cause I see him as the type that can be playful when he wants to be and then, once he has me completely turned on by that; then he'd be aggressive. I like to think he would start out taking it slow and then let the excitement in me build slowly until I'm driven completely insane with pleasure.” Her face flushed a brilliant red as she ran her fingers through her short, golden hair: “Oh my god...I can't believe I just wrote that and now I can't erase it cause I used a pen. Oh well...like I said...nobody's going to see this anyway.” 

Question Ten: Rate his hotness on a scale of 1 to 10. 

Cagalli pondered this question for a minute: “Hmmm...if I had to give him a number...probably 6...no...7. Okay, one question left. Final Question: Would you change anything about him? 

Cagalli thought for a moment and then, smiling; put her answer down. It was then she was called back into the meeting room to settle a sudden dispute that had erupted between two council members on their way out. She hurriedly left the room, leaving the magazine laying wide open on her desk among her other papers. It was at that moment when an unexpected visitor showed up looking for the golden haired goddess of victory. 

Athrun sighed heavily in disappointment as his search for the fiery princess had been all for naught. He scanned the room one last time hoping, maybe he'd get a chance to speak to her alone for a moment. He glanced at the open magazine on her desk and his emerald orbs widened as big as saucers as he read the title of the quiz on the page: “How Hot Is Your Man & How Good Is He At Seducing You?” He felt his face flush as he thought: “I thought she hated these things?”... “Do I dare look at the answers?”... “Would it be betraying her trust if I did?” His curious eyes wandered down to the page once again: “It wouldn't hurt if I just looked at a few.”

He glanced at her answer for the first question: What kind of lover is your man? d. quiet. Athrun's eyes widened: “What does she mean by quiet?”... “We've never done...” His face turned beet red as he moved on to the next question: Is he more spontaneous than you? A: No way in hell is he more spontaneous than me! I'm always the first to say or do something.” Athrun's emerald eyes widened and the briefly flashed angrily: “What?!”... “Wasn't I the one who made the first move?!”... “Didn't I kiss her first?!” He took a deep breath to return himself back to his calm state yet again. What kind of dresser is he? e. slightly sharp, but with room for improvement. Athrun nodded in agreement with that answer: “Okay...That I'll give her. My clothes have always been nice, but they can stand an improvement.” How romantic is he? His sharp eyes scanned the page as he carefully read the answer, which caused him to chuckle and shake his head: “Don't pay attention huh princess?...Well...as a matter of fact I do know your favorite flower, song, and wouldn't you be surprised to know about my dancing. I can see you do know that I know your favorite foods...that doesn't surprise me considering all the times I've treated you to dinner.” Is it easy to seduce you? Athrun scanned her answer yet again and a small devilish smirk spread across his face: “A lot of work ahead of me huh?”... “We'll see about that.” 

How good of a kisser is he? Athrun's face tinted a slight red and before he read her answer, he took a deep breath to compose himself because this, according to him; was one answer that could either make or break a man. He found his eyes widening again in shock as he read her answer: “Since it has been over a year since we last kissed...I have no idea what kind of kisser he is anymore.” One would expect Athrun to be angry at this point, but, with a mischievous glint in his emerald eyes, and a small smirk on his face; he made a mental note of that and moved on the the next question. What are his best features? Check all that apply. He noticed a point where she had been contemplating something because of the markings on that question and turned a noticeable shade of red when he'd seen she checked off ...ass. Athrun chuckled to himself: “Ahhh...so that's why she was staring at me so much today. Come to think of it...didn't she ask me to pick up her pencil that had fallen to the floor? She could've easily grabbed that before it dropped so why did she...?” His mouth then turned up in a small smile: “Ohh...so that's the game she's playing. Well...if she wants to play that way...by all means...I'll certainly play along.” His eyes caught the rest of what she wrote in response to that question in which she stated outright that she'd never seen him shirtless apart from the time she'd patched up a gun shot wound she inflicted upon him at their first meeting. Athrun snickered and then smirked: “I guess that doesn't count...now...let's see what else she has written here after this that's in really tiny print: “I have a feeling he has a nice body. I don't know why...I just have a feeling.” Athrun smiled mischievously at the various things he had already begun to mull over in his cunning mind: “Okay..on to the next question.” Where would you want him to make out with you the most? He noticed that Cagalli had checked off “office.” “Office huh?”... “Good to know...” Another small smirk crossed his face as he finished his sentence: “...Very good to know.” 

Nothing on earth could've prepared the blue-haired Coordinator for the next question he was about to read. Where do you fantasize him making love to you? And without being too explicit...how? 

Athrun's face immediately turned candy apple red as he found himself to be quite drawn to the answer the golden-haired goddess of victory had given. This was the other answer that could either make or break a man, and he was pretty sure he already knew the answer to this since they had never been together in that sense...as of yet. His curious emerald orbs scanned the page: “I'd like to go back to the place where we first met because that is where are most fondest memories are. I think he'd be gentle and teasing at first cause I see him as the type that can be playful when he wants to be and then once he has me completely turned on by that, then he'd be aggressive. I like to think he would start out taking it slow and then let the excitement in me build slowly until I'm completely driven insane with pleasure.” Athrun tugged at his Orb uniform's collar as if he was letting out a considerable amount of steam. Glancing briefly at himself in one of her mirrors, he noticed that he was completely flushed from head to toe. He was totally taken aback and struck dumb with awe by this descriptive and beautiful answer. His inner self pondered: “I never knew she had these kinds of feelings.” He shook his head to cast out all the naughty thoughts that were dancing around in his head and then continued to read. Rate his hotness on a scale of 1 to 10. He glanced at her answer and knocked over his chair as he leapt up and exclaimed: “Seven?!” He couldn't believe it. After writing that beautiful answer in the previous question, he only ranked a lousy 7 in her eyes. Calming down, he picked up the chair, sat back down, and heaved a heavy, saddened sigh as he murmured: “Is that all I'm worth to you...Cagalli?” Instead of reading the last question and answer, he decided it best to close the magazine and leave the room, but not before saying to himself in a determined tone of voice, a small, mischievous smiled forming upon his lips: “So...this number 7 can't seduce you huh?”... “Well...” ... “By the end of the week...your answers will change.” 

-The very next day...May 15th. Time: 9am. Location: Athha Estate, Cagalli's room-

Cagalli awoke to the sound of her alarm clock blaring and slammed her hand down on the snooze button. She hated getting up this early...but another meeting was to be held from 10:30 am to 2:00pm regarding the validity of the peace treaties between Orb and ZAFT and also between Orb and The E.A. She groaned at the thought of all the yelling she was probably going to hear today. She sluggishly sat up and once her amber eyes adjusted themselves to the light, they widened in shock. All around her bedroom were scattered bouquets of red roses...her favorite flower. “What the!?...” ... “What's all this?!” She quickly dressed herself in her purple representative outfit and then looked around her room for a card to say who the sender might be, but she found no such card. As she descended the stairs and finally arrived at the breakfast table, her eyes widened yet again as she noticed a single red rose placed carefully across a plate with her favorite food...donel kebabs with chili sauce, and a small bowl of white rice. She ran her fingers across the smooth red petals as she gently placed it aside. Her inner self screamed: “Who's sending these?!”... “Is it Kira?”... “No...he doesn't know my favorite flower or food....maybe...Lacus?”... “No...although she does know my favorite things, she wouldn't go this overboard...maybe...Athrun?” She shook her head: “Nah...that's impossible...I never...” Then, as if reading her mind; the blue-haired Coordinator in question casually walked into the room. Cagalli nearly did a double take at said guy in front of her. Eying him from top to bottom, she turned a slight red. His black shoes were the only thing about him that were the same as always, but the rest of his outfit consisted of khaki cargo pants and a black dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up and the top two buttons undone to reveal the pinkish red Haumea necklace she had given him two years ago. As he walked past her to take his seat at the table, she caught a slight whiff of the cologne he was wearing, which she immediately deduced was Aramis. 

Athrun took his seat next to her at the table and noticed her amber eyes lingering on him for a lot longer than usual. He casually ran his fingers through his neck length blue hair and flashed her a small, warm smile: “Good morning.” 

Cagalli shook away another blush and growled: “Is that all you have to say?!”... “What's going on?!”... “And w-what's with?!...” She pointed at his clothes: “Do you intend on wearing that to the meeting?!” 

Athrun chuckled, his emerald eyes sparkling with happiness as he nodded: “Uh-huh.”... “I already spoke to Kira and Kisaka about it and got their approval.”... “I thought I could stand a change.”... “Why?...” He paused and looked slowly up to gaze into her eyes innocently: “Don't you like it?” 

Cagalli's face tinted a slight red before she heaved a heavy, frustrated sigh. No matter how hard she tried, there was no resisting those beautiful emerald eyes and my god did he look yummy. Cagalli knew this and responded in a mumble: “O-Okay...fine...but...next time I wanna be let in on things too.” 

Athrun chuckled and nodded: “Okay.” His inner self snickered: “Oh don't worry...you'll be let in on my plans soon enough.” 

Cagalli eyed him curiously: “What's up with all the roses?”... “And my favorite food too?”... “Nobody ever lets me eat donel kebabs for breakfast without arguing with me about it not being ladylike.” “Spill it...what do you know about this?” 

Athrun smiled as he took a quick sip of his coffee and replied: “You seemed so stressed yesterday I thought this would cheer you up, so I got up early and set this up. Roses are your favorite flower right?” He then feigned panic: “I screwed up didn't I?!”... “I can always take them back!...” 

As she munched on her kebabs, Cagalli felt her face grow hot before she blurted out: “No!”... “I-I mean...no...I like roses...you didn't screw up...I...ummm...” 

All of the sudden, she noticed Athrun get up from his seat and stand directly behind her. He placed another rose next to her plate and he served her some more rice, reaching over her shoulder as he did so. His mouth was right next to her ear when he whispered in response: “I'm glad...I just wanted to please you.”... “Are you pleased?” 

Cagalli turned beet red and felt herself tremble at the feel of his hot breath next to her ear and their sudden closeness. Not knowing what else to say..or even how to respond to that, she scarfed down the rest of her food, stood up, and excused herself in a flustered tone: “I-I'll see you at the meeting.” She then took off out of the room, closed the door, and heaved a heavy sigh as she leaned her back up against it. She shook off another impending blush and felt herself trembling from the scene that had just occurred. Her heart felt as if it would jump right out of her chest it was beating so hard and fast. She ran her fingers through her short, golden hair and thought: “Damn it.”... “What's wrong with me?”... “And him...”... “Who was that guy in there?”... “That wasn't Athrun...was it?”..”He's gotta be up to something. I just can't put my finger on it, but I know he's up to something.” 

Meanwhile, Athrun still sat calmly sipping his coffee as a devilish smile crossed his features. He chuckled to himself: “This is going to be a fun five days.”


	2. The Talented Mr. Zala

-Country of Orb, May 15th CE 74. Location: Athha Estate. Time: Noon - 

 

It was a bright and sunny day and very warm outside. Cagalli cranked up the A.C. As she sat in her office reviewing some papers. However, thoughts of a certain blue-haired Coordinator were very much lingering in her mind. She felt a shiver run down her spine as she remembered what he had said to her at breakfast just yesterday: “I'm glad."... "I just wanted to please you.”... “Are you pleased...Cagalli?" He had said that in response to her saying that she liked the roses he had placed around the house and also her favorite foods that he had prepared specially for her. She felt her face heat up slightly as she brushed a sweat drop from her brow. She shook naughty thoughts out of her head and then decided to take a break and go for a short walk outside. Once outside the estate's door, she ran into her and Kira's friend Miriallia, whom they affectionately referred to as Miri; who decided to join Cagalli in her walk around the garden. 

Miri smiled as they walked around staring at the pretty flowers in the estate's garden: “I hear the boy's are having some kind of car wash today for Reverend Malchio's orphanage. It's to help keep it open since the children staying there love it so much.” 

Cagalli raised a golden eyebrow in curiosity: “Really?”... “Lacus never told me that the orphanage was in need of money. I'd like to help if I can.” 

Miri nodded and giggled: “Well...that's one reason why we're going to check it out.” 

Cagalli raised a golden eyebrow again in curiosity: “What's the other reason?” 

Miri smiled mischievously, her baby blue eyes sparkling as she did so: “C'mon Cagalli...a bunch of hot mens's washing cars...shirts are bound to come off.” 

Cagalli rolled her eyes: “Miri...tell me...is that all you think about?” 

Miri pretended to be shocked and pouted: “I'm insulted Cagalli...I think about lots more than just men. I also think about how to write good stories about them.” She winked at Cagalli who chuckled slightly in response.

 

Cagalli shook her head and still chuckled slightly: “I thought you might say that.” 

Miri eyed Cagalli and smirked: “You know me so well huh?... “Well, I know you all to well too Cagalli Yula Athha. You might like to know that this whole thing was organized by a certain handsome blue-haired knight who's in your favor.” 

Cagalli felt a blush creep into her face as she eyed her friend curiously: “So what?”... “What does that have to do with me?”... “Whatever he does is his own business.” 

Miri smirked: “I understand that. I knew you would say that too, but I just thought that you'd like to know that he's going to be there.” 

Cagalli, a slight blush still on her face; hissed: “Of course he is!”... “If he's in charge of it he'd be a fool if he didn't show up.” 

Miri chuckled at Cagalli's reaction: “Well...if he's going to be there and it's hot out...his shirt is bound to come off as well...and...” She leaned over and whispered in Cagalli's ear: “...I hear tell he has a gorgeous body.” She winked at Cagalli whose face turned a bright shade of red at that thought. 

Cagalli, with her bright red face, stammered: “M-Miri...cut it out...I've told you, he's not the type of guy that would do something like that in public.” 

Miri chuckled and shrugged: “Alright...whatever you say.” 

-12:15 pm that same day - 

Just outside the orphanage the boys were washing all cars that came their way. Since their friend Heine had the most charisma out of the bunch, he was put in charge of luring in the customers. Miguel, Rusty, Nicol, Yzak, Dearkka, Shinn, Auel, and even super Coordinator Kira were all busy rinsing and scrubbing the parked cars. Lacus stood on the balcony with Reverend Malchio keeping the children occupied with various games. Miriallia and Cagalli came in through the back gate and were greeted briefly by a shirtless and soap covered Heine before he retreated back to the front to retrieve more patrons. 

Miri smirked triumphantly: “See...I told you this would be nice. Isn't this much better than walking around a boring garden all afternoon?” She scanned the crowd for the blue-haired Coordinator, but he was nowhere to be found. She and Cagalli approached Kira, who was busy drying off a red S.U.V. and  
asked where the man in charge was. 

Kira briefly smirked in Cagalli's direction, which earned him a playful punch in the arm from her: “Last I saw him, he was with Lacus and Reverend Malchio checking out the totals and how well things were going. He should be back out here in a few minutes...oh wait...there he is now.” He called to his friend and waved: “Hey Athrun!”... “Over here!” 

Cagalli turned around at her brother's mention of the Coordinator in question and her eyes widened as she noticed Athrun in his black swim trunks and red tee shirt, the Haumea stone, as always; draped around his neck and displayed for everyone to see. He appeared to be busy helping Dearkka finish up washing a car. Suddenly, everything became slow motion to the fiery blonde goddess of victory and her eyes widened as she noticed Athrun slowly take off his shirt and toss it to the ground. Inner Cagalli: “Get it together Cagalli!”... “He's just one guy!” She looked up from the the ground just in time to catch him spraying water all over himself. The droplets clung to his navy blue hair as he casually shook it out and coolly ran his fingers through it. She then took notice of a single droplet running down his check and watched as it traveled from down his neck all the way down to his well toned stomach. She suddenly felt eyes on her awaken her from her reverie. The pair of gorgeous emerald eyes that were standing in front of her asked gently in a voice full of concern: “Hey Cagalli. Are you feeling okay? Is something wrong?” He reached his hand out, felt her forehead, and then softly caressed her cheek. 

Cagalli's face burned bright red as she backed away: “N-Nothing!...”...”I mean...nothing is wrong.”... “I just stopped by to visit and see what I could do to help.” 

Athrun smiled playfully and chuckled, his emerald eyes lighting up as he laughed: “I see.” Just as he was about to tease Cagalli a little more, the very forward pink haired Meer Campbell came bounding up and hugged him from behind, her flirty voice purred: “I'll give you a hand Athrun.” She flashed a satisfied and haughty smirk at Cagalli who simply glared at the girl. Athrun mouthed a silent “Help Me” to Kira before he suddenly felt himself being dragged over to Meer's car and noticed Cagalli's amber eyes turn a murderous glare upon Meer, who was practically hanging all over him as she pointed out how muddy her pink Beetle was. 

Miri huffed in the busty pink-haired girl's direction as she watched her hang all over Athrun: “Would you look at that sickening display. Poor Athrun, don't you just feel like slapping her to death?”... “Cagalli?” 

Cagalli, with her back turned to Meer, a glare still in her eye, plus a dark aura emanating within them as she growled under her breath: “She can do whatever the damn hell she wants. I don't care.” 

Kira chuckled nervously: “Ummm...well...Sis...if you don't care what she does, then that means you don't care what she's doing over there right now while your back is turned?” 

Cagalli's head whirled around and her amber eyes widened in anger as she noticed Meer pretend to slip and fall. This resulted in Meer's landing right in Athrun's arms, her lips inches from his. Flying into her own personal SEED mode, Cagalli felt something within her snap as she rushed headlong into the crowd with tremendous speed. She was so driven by her impulses that she didn't realize what she was doing. She tapped the scantily clad Meer on the shoulder just long enough for the pink-haired girl to whirl around and... POW! Cagalli's fist connected with her nose causing it to slightly bleed as she growled: “Get your hands off him you whory bitch!” 

Meer exclaimed through phony tears: “Why did you do that?!”... “I was just talking to him and I tripped.” 

Cagalli rolled her eyes and hissed: “Oh please...you tripped?!” ... “That's the oldest trick in the book. I know what you were doing.”... “Can't you see he doesn't even want you touching him?!” 

Meer hissed back: “So...you caught me...so now what?” She smirked slightly: “Now everybody knows what you're really like Princess Athha. A real lady would never punch anyone. Athrun wants a woman, not a tomboyish little girl.” 

Cagalli's amber eyes widened as she finally noticed what she had done. She turned to Athrun and met his shocked gaze. Without saying a word, she turned from everyone and took off embarrassed into the house.

Miri started after her, but Athrun shook his head: “You stay here and keep Kira from throttling Meer...I'll go.” He turned his back to everyone and began walking away, but not before turning to Meer himself, an angry glare emanating from his usually calm emerald eyes: “She's more of a woman than you could ever hope to be.” Hearing Meer grumble in frustration and stalk away was music to his ears and as he walked into the house, Miri and Kira heard him whisper: “She got jealous...over me.” 

-Meanwhile -

Cagalli ran through the house looking for a place to hide herself for a little while. She finally settled on hiding in the garage where she then sat on the floor and hugged her knees. She mentally scolded herself: “What the hell was that?!”... “Why did you do that Cagalli?!”... “Damn it...now they all know that you get jealous!”... “Kira will rag on you about this for the rest of your life!” Her eyes softened as she mumbled against her knees: “Why?” She pictured Athrun's shocked expression from before. “Damn it!”... “Why did he of all people have to see?!” A gentle voice from behind her responded: “I was just lucky I guess.” She nearly jumped a foot in the air in surprise and her amber eyes widened in shock as she noticed him appear so suddenly behind her: “How much did you just hear?!” 

Athrun chuckled and smirked: “Enough to know how you're feeling. In fact, I was here before you. I took a short cut and then hid. Lucky for me you showed up in one of the two places I thought you'd try to hide in.” 

Cagalli muttered under her breath: “Well...you caught me, as always..so...” She leaned against Dearkka's red convertible's hood: “Come on. Let's hear it. Tell me I wasn't thinking. Tell me I didn't behave like a lady. I know you're just dying to say something, so let's hear it!” 

Athrun's face tinted a slight red as a small smirk crossed his face: “You got jealous...over me?” 

Cagalli felt her face heat up from the gaze of those emerald eyes on her and she hissed: “What?!” “Jealous?!” She laughed sarcastically to try and cover it up: “No way in hell am I jealous!” 

Athrun raised a blue eyebrow in curiosity and chuckled: “Really?”... “So...Meer walked away with a bloody nose because...?” He noticed her floundering in her response and moved in for the kill with a smug smirk on his face the entire time: “You like me don't you?” 

Cagalli's face turned beet red as she growled: “O-Of course I like you...we're friends damn it!” 

Athrun shook his head, his face still a slight red as he spoke: “That's not what I mean.” He walked over to stand directly in front of her, water still dripping down his blue bangs as he smiled devilishly: “Neither of us is leaving here till you tell me.” He patted the keys in his pocket: “I was given the keys to all the rooms in this house...this one included...so...tell me...” He gently caressed her cheek, his emerald eyes gazing into hers while he still had that playful smirk on his face: “Do you like me?” 

Cagalli felt her face heat up at his gentle touch: “I-I already told you why. I don't need to explain myself any further.” 

Athrun shook his head, the smirk still on his face: “If you won't tell me...” He whispered in her ear: “Then might I tell you what I'm thinking...Hime-sama?” 

Cagalli turned her reddening face away from him and managed to stammer in a mumble: “F-Fine...go for it.” 

Athrun chuckled to himself: “Oh... I intend to...don't you worry.” He turned her face back towards his with his right hand so he could look in her eyes, then pulled his hand away as he spoke aloud this time: “It's more of a dream of mine really. A dream I've been having for years now...ever since we first met.” 

Cagalli raised a golden eyebrow in curiosity and hissed impatiently: “Let's hear it then.” 

Athrun flashed a devilish smirk at her and casually brushed her bangs from her eyes: “Patience...patience...I'm getting to that.” He reached out, snatched her hand, and pulled her to stand up directly in front of him and very close together: “I've been dreaming about...you and me...alone...on that deserted island, the waves gently caressing the shore...” 

Cagalli felt as if her heart would burst out of her chest as she exclaimed: “Athrun...I don't!...” Before she could finish speaking, he put his finger to her lips. 

Athrun shook his head and smiled warmly at her: “I'm not finished yet.” He pulled her in for a tight hug: “You got jealous over me. No girl has ever done something like that for me before.” He hugged her as close as he could, held her as if he never wanted to let her go, and whispered hotly in her ear: “Don't you know how that makes me feel?”... “What it does to me?” 

Cagalli blushed heavily and shook her head: “I-I told you...I wasn't jealous!”... “I was just...protecting you.” 

Athrun smirked cutely and shook his head like a stubborn child: “I know what I saw Cagalli. Protection may have been a part of your plan...but to me, it looked as if what you did was based on pure impulse. You know...in the heat of the moment. I could see it in your eyes...your desire to hold on to something you want to be yours...but...there's no need to worry because...” He brushed a tress of her short golden hair away from her ear and whispered hotly: “It already belong only to you.” 

Cagalli blushed heavily at those delicious words and the piercing emerald eyes that seemed to be staring her down: “A-Athrun...” 

Athrun smirked coolly: “Yup...that's my name. Is there something you wanna say to me?”

Cagalli found her bare fingers trailing a water droplet down his bare chest and, noticing him shiver; took the towel from around his neck and began to dry his hair with it: “What am I going to do with you?”... “Aren't you cold?”... “You're shivering pretty bad.” 

Athrun felt his face burn bright red as his inner self spoke: “Damn...she almost made me lose my cool there for a second.” As he thought about the delicate way her fingers trailed down his chest a few mere seconds before, he shivered slightly. His inner self spoke again: “Am I cold?”... “I'm anything but cold...on the inside anyway.” A devilish smirk formed on his lips as his inner self looked at Cagalli with a hungry gaze and asked: “What are you going to do with me?”... “I'm curious to find out myself.” He looked at her with the same gaze that his inner self had given her and spoke aloud in an innocent tone: “I am a little chilly.” He gazed into her amber eyes with those devastatingly heart piercing eyes of his before he finished his sentence: “Could you...warm me up?” Before Cagalli could open her mouth to argue, he caught her lips in a sweet, lingering kiss; his tongue playing around with hers as he took the kiss deeper, making sure he truly tasted her. 

Cagalli's face flushed candy apple red and her eyes widened as she thought: “Is this really happening?!”... “ Is he really kissing me like this?!”... “Where the hell did he learn how to kiss like this?!” It was then that she felt his loving caress, the warmth of his body so close to hers and all reason seemed to vanish within her only to be replaced by this desire that Athrun had just been talking about earlier...only...this wasn't just desire...it was almost a need, a hunger. The way he kissed her conveyed to her that even during their little relationship hiatus, he still held these kinds of feelings for her. She finally succumbed to Athrun's deliciously hot kisses and found her fingers absentmindedly trailing down his well toned chest yet again. Athrun felt himself shiver under her touch as he laid her down gently on the hood of the red convertible that she had been sitting on and continued kissing her. He thought to himself: “God...she tastes so good...I should probably stop...but I...” He broke the kiss first as he breathed with a small smirk on his face: “I've been dreaming about that too you know.” 

Cagalli reached up and brushed his beautiful blue bangs out of his eyes as she breathed in response: “Athrun...I...we...” 

Athrun leaned down and placed a kiss on her forehead, then on her cheek and his lips hovered inches away from hers as he whispered hotly: “Can't you see I hunger for you Cagalli?”... “I've always hungered for you. Ever since the day we first met on that island. You know what? I'm not afraid to admit this anymore, but the truth is...” He blushed slightly in a shy manner: “I wanted to kiss you then too. I wanted it so bad I...” He suddenly felt Cagalli yank him down by the Haumea necklace and attack his mouth with the most fiery of all kisses, him responding fervently with one of his own. She broke the kiss first by pulling away and sitting up and as she adjusted her mussed up clothes and hair, Athrun impulsively pulled her in for another hot kiss and she murmured as he kissed her neck “Lunch...tomorrow...are you free?” 

Athrun finished kissing her and responded with a playful smile on his face: “Meet you at noon?” He handed her the keys to open the garage door: “My place or yours?” 

Cagalli, with an extremely flushed face; nodded: “Y-Yes!...”... “I mean...my office...noon. See ya then.” She opened the door to the garage and quickly walked out as she heard Kira calling for her to see if she was alright. 

Athrun smiled one of his most devilish and mischievous of smiles as he thought: “Your office huh?” He remembered question number eight on the quiz and a plethora of ideas began to form in his head: “Good to know...very good to know.” As he walked out of the garage, he passed Miri, winked and mouthed “Thank you.” She simply smiled and winked back in response. 

 

-The Next Day, May 16th, CE 74. Time: Noon. Location: Cagalli's office in the Athha Estate - 

It was lunch time and Cagalli had made sure that her entire schedule was clear for her lunch with Athrun. There were staff meetings being held, but she asked Kira to attend those for her in her place. She sat in her office in casual attire, jeans and a red button down shirt with its long sleeves rolled up and the top two buttons undone. She had some sandwiches, drinks, and snacks made and sent up to her office earlier so there was nothing left for her to do but wait. 

As if on cue, Athrun made his grand entrance. This time, he wore a white short sleeved dress shirt unbuttoned, a black tank top that seemed to show off his slim, yet well toned body, black pants and shoes, the Haumea necklace, and for added affect, he casually took off the sunglasses he had on and brushed his navy blue bangs back, revealing his gorgeous emerald eyes. Cagalli couldn't help but eye him from head to toe as she thought to herself: “Is this the same Athrun Zala from when we first met who was so embarrassed and shy that he would always turn away after he'd say something potentially romantic?”... “Hell...for that matter, was this the same Athrun Zala from last week who was so focused during the staff meetings that I couldn't even catch his eye?”... “Who is this person?!”... “Maybe Athrun has finally snapped.” She had to admit though, she was liking this side of him. This devilish Athrun that was leaning with his back against the doorway and his black jacket casually swung over his shoulder as he straddled the doorway. This devilish Athrun whose eyes seemed to radiate ravenous lust with the heat of a thousand suns with jus one glance. Then came that smirk, that playful smirk that he had given to her yesterday just before his soft lips touched hers for the first time in over a year. She shifted around in her chair as he stared her down. 

Athrun chuckled to himself as he noticed Cagalli staring at him for longer than he anticipated. His inner self smirked: “Glad to know the new wardrobe is attracting so much attention.” He then spoke aloud as that smirk still remained on his face: “Good afternoon...Cagalli.” 

Cagalli's face tinted a slight red: “Y-Yes...to you as well.” Her inner self scolded her: “To you as well?!”... “To you as well?!”... “What's happening to you?!”... “You're starting to sound as cheerful as Lacus!” Aloud she hissed at his smirking face: “Are you just gonna stand there or are you coming in?!” 

Athrun, without saying a word and a mischievous smirk still on his face; closed the door to the office and locked it. 

Cagalli eyed him curiously as he tossed his jacket on a nearby chair and coolly approached her: “I take it that means you're coming in?” 

Athrun pulled a CD out of his pocket, placed it in her CD player, and held out his hand to her as her favorite song “Masquerade” played. (A/N: Watch Code Geass episode 14 to hear part of this awesome song if I got the title right, if I didn't someone can correct me. - giggles-) He smiled and asked politely: “May I have this dance before lunch...hime-sama?” 

Cagalli's eyes widened as she felt her face heat up at his soothing voice and before she knew it, she was spun into his arms: “Athrun?”... “What are you...?” Her back was drawn up against his chest so tightly that she could feel how fast his heart was beating and inhaled his intoxicating scent of Aramis cologne and soap. She felt her pulse quicken as his hands traveled down from her shoulders to her waist where they then rested: “I...I don't dance very well.” 

Athrun whispered in her ear: “Me neither.”... “We'll learn by the way our bodies move.” Using his skilled hands, he swayed her hips slowly from side to side and felt her back arch up against his chest. He blushed slightly as he smirked devilishly: “It's easy.” “See?”... “Just like that.” 

Cagalli's face flushed bright red as she let her hips sway slowly from side to side with the help of Athrun's gentle hands as she asked curiously: “My favorite song...You know it?”... “How did you...?” 

Athrun spun her around in his arms so she was facing him, his arms wrapped tightly around her waist as he smiled and chuckled: “I like this song too you know?”... “Who would've guessed that we have similar tastes in music.” They glided across the room gracefully, Athrun applying dips and turns when appropriate. Just when he and Cagalli were becoming lost in the dance and the feel of each others arms around the other, the song ended. He kissed her hand and politely bowed, then pulled out her chair as they sat down to eat. Athrun chuckled to himself as Cagalli munched nervously on her grilled cheese sandwich and kept taking sips of her drink, which he knew she usually did when she was nervous as he would do the same thing. His inner self smirked: “This is almost too easy...you know that right?”... “You've got her...now go in for the kill.” He smiled sweetly as he now asked aloud: “Something on your mind?”... “You're eating awfully fast.” He eyed the chocolate covered strawberries on the table and his inner self smirked mischievously as he picked one up as Cagalli began to answer his question. 

Cagalli, her face candy apple red; shook her head and hissed: “N-No!”... “I'm just hungry. I haven't eaten all day. You got a problem with that?!” 

Athrun shook his head and chuckled at her angry face: “Nope. No problems at all.” He lifted the chocolate covered strawberry in his fingers, poised it over his lips, and then slowly took a bite of it. He then glanced at Cagalli out of the corner of his eye, her fiery amber eyes were fixed on him as he ate the chocolate covered fruit. He took another bite of the strawberry and casually wiped his mouth with his napkin and then licked his lips. 

Cagalli tried her best to shake all naughty thoughts out of her head, but to no avail. Her inner self screamed: “Why did the cook have to pick strawberries as a snack?!”... “And God...why did Athrun have to eat that damn strawberry so slow?!” It was driving her crazy and making her all tingly inside. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore as her face burned bright red, she blurted out: “Athrun!”... “S-Stop doing that!” 

Athrun looked puzzled and innocent as can be, his emerald eyes blinked as he feigned confusion: “Huh?”... “Stop doing what?” He reached for another strawberry, but Cagalli grabbed the bowl first. 

Cagalli snatched the bowl of chocolate covered strawberries away from him and hissed: “No more strawberries!” 

Athrun raised a curious blue eyebrow and smirked that sexy smirk of his: “Oh...I get it.” Suddenly, with one full sweep of his arm, he cleared all the food off the desk and watched as it fell to the floor with a loud clatter. His emerald eyes were filled with that devastatingly ravenous desire she had seen in them before. He leaned over the desk and kissed her sweetly, yet hungrily; the same kind of kiss they had shared the day before in that garage. He noticed her eyes widen in shock at first and then close as she returned his kiss. 

 

Cagalli broke the deliciously hot kiss first as she whispered next to his ear as she was catching her breath: “Athrun...you taste like strawberries and chocolate...mmmmm...so damn good.” 

Athrun smiled warmly at her and then leaned down to kiss her chastely on the lips, then trail scalding hot kisses down her neck as he felt her pull him closer to her as he lay on top of her on the desk. Her hands had slipped under the back of his shirt and she trailed her fingers delicately across the smooth and warm skin of his back. He shivered under her touch as he found his wandering hands starting to undo the buttons on her top until the shirt was wide open and her black lace bra was visible to his innocent emerald eyes. He felt her trail hot kisses down his neck and, while trying to keep his composure; he managed to ask in a breathless voice: “Cagalli? 

Cagalli's honey colored lips hovered over Athrun's neck as she responded in a mumble: “Hmmm?”... “What?” She continued to kiss his neck and run her fingers through his neck length navy blue hair. 

Athrun abruptly sat up on the desk, and, pulling her up with him; he hugged her lovingly and whispered hotly: “I want to make love to you.” 

Cagalli's amber eyes widened in surprise at his bold statement and she felt her face begin to heat up again: “A-Athrun...I...” 

Athrun gently ran his fingers through her hair, closed his eyes, and cut her off as he whispered softly, hotly, tenderly, and in in a determined tone in her ear: “Someday...I will make love to you...Cagalli.”


	3. Elevator Music

-Country of Orb, May 16h CE 74. Location: Athha Estate. Time: 3pm - 

 

As Cagalli lay slumped on her desk in her office exhausted from that day's meeting and all the arguing she had to listen to. There was one bright spot in her day, and that was the blue haired boy sitting next to her at the meeting looking fine in his Orb military uniform. He'd noticed her stealing secret glances in his direction and when she dropped her pencil, he flashed her one of his sexy smiles and whispered coyly in her ear: “You want to see me pick that up don't you?” She had been unable to focus on the rest of the meeting after that as her mind was still reeling from the events of the previous day. She felt her face grow warm and a shiver run down her spine as she vividly remembered Athrun's tender caresses, his passionate kisses, and his gentle voice as it spoke the sentence she'd deep down been longing to hear. His new flirtatious nature, along with his sultry and smoldering stare only served to add fuel to the fire burning in her heart. He was gazing deep into her eyes when he said that sentence. Why oh why couldn't she forget that sentence?! She turned a slight red again, then shook it off as she recounted the the exact words that had come out of Athrun's beautiful, luscious lips the day before...

-Flashback to May 15th CE 74. Time: Around 1pm. Location: Cagalli's office- 

 

Athrun gently caressed her cheek and whispered in her ear: “Someday...I will make love to you...Cagalli.” 

Cagalli immediately turned a brilliant shade of red as she nervously began to re button her top, her hands noticeably shaking: “A-Athrun...I..we...” 

Athrun noticed her hands shaking slightly and covered them with his own. He then stared into her beautiful amber eyes and smiled warmly at her as he replied: “This is kind of sudden on my part...but...” His face tinted a slight pink as he finished his sentence: “ this has been on my mind for quite some time now.” 

Cagalli felt her heart beat quicken at Athrun's confession. She'd been thinking about it a lot too. Actually, at one point; it was the only thought that seemed to occupy her already busy mind. She managed to get out a mumbled: “I-It has?” She carefully slid off her desk and walked over to her mirror to finish adjusting her disheveled top. Her heart nearly leapt into her throat as she suddenly felt Athrun's slim, yet strong arms encircle her tiny waist from behind as he gazed into the mirror along with her. 

He helped her button the last two top buttons on her red blouse and spoke in a gentle, yet embarrassed voice; his emerald eyes gazing into hers as he spoke: “I'm sorry. I didn't...I mean...” He took a deep breath to compose himself and continued: “I don't want you to feel like I'm forcing you into doing anything. Whenever you're ready should be the right time for you.” He rested his chin on her shoulder and whispered in her ear: “...and I'll wait for “that time” for as long as it takes.. I just want you to be happy.” 

Cagalli shivered as his warm breath tickled her ear and breathlessly murmured: “Athrun...” 

Without saying another word, the emerald eyed Coordinator placed a sweet and gentle kiss on her honey colored lips as he did up the very last top button on her blouse. She could tell he really didn't want to, but he broke the kiss first and casually threw his black jacket over the shoulder of the now rumpled and untucked shirt he was wearing. He then coolly ran his fingers through his disheveled hair, pushing his bangs away from his eyes. The piercing, melt a girl on the spot look that he gave her nearly stopped her heart as did the last few sentences that came out of his mouth before he left the room: “Do you want to know the reason why I want you to be happy?... Why I say I'll wait as long as it takes for you?” 

Cagalli's face felt as if it were on fire as she stood rooted to her place in front of her mirror, nodded and replied as calmly and coolly as she could: “Y-Yes.” Her inner self screamed: “Oh My God!”... “What is it?!”... “Just tell me already!” 

With that heart piercing look still in his eyes, a small smile, and even a slight blush dusting his face; he replied clearly and in a determined tone: “I love you Cagalli...that's why.” 

Cagalli's amber eyes widened and as soon as the door closed behind him, she fell to her knees. She was shaking all over, not from fear, but from happiness. She brushed a tear from her eyes and sighed heavily as she began to pick up the mess they had made. “Athrun...you...you idiot!”... “You really caught me off guard with that one.” She looked at herself in the mirror and was surprised to notice that her reflection was not angry, but smiling for the first time in a long while; and there were also a few more tears rolling down her cheeks. 

-End of Flashback- 

And so...that was the state the cunning blue haired Coordinator had left the fiery goddess of victory in. She was finding herself unable to focus on her meetings that day because every time she tried to, she'd keep hearing his gentle, soothing voice saying: “Someday I'll make love to you.”... “I just want you to be happy.”... “I love you Cagalli.” She shook her head in frustration and ran her fingers through her short blonde hair. She felt her face begin to grow warm yet again, but managed to suppress a blush this time. “Grrr!”... “What is he doing to me?!”... “He...he's driving me crazy!”... “It's almost as if he's trying to prove something to himself...no...prove something to me...but what the heck is it?” 

 

-Meanwhile...just down the hall- 

Athrun paced back and forth in front of the elevator outside the conference room door. His mind was still on what he'd said to Cagalli the day before. He thought to himself: “Damn it.”... “Maybe I took things too far.” He shook his head firmly to reassure himself that his plan would work: “No...I did the right thing. She needed to hear that and that's what I wanted to say, so I said it. She needed to see that I could be impulsive too.” A smirk immediately crossed his face as he glanced at the elevator and just as the doors to it opened, he got a wonderful idea. His friend Nicol was just about to step off the elevator, when Athrun pulled him back on and the door closed. 

Nicol looked at his friend in a curious, yet worried manner: “Athrun...what's wrong?”... “I needed to be on that floor.” 

Athrun, a slight smirk still on his face; apologized and then asked: “I have a favor to ask of you, and if you do this for me, I promise to take those piano lessons you've been pestering me to take...and I'll be serious about them this time...I promise.” 

Nicol nodded and chuckled: “Wow..this must be something really important if you're promising to take piano lessons...okay...so...what's the favor?” 

Athrun grinned mischievously, a gleam in his emerald eyes: “This requires both of our mechanical expertise.” As he whispered the rest of the plan to Nicol, the green haired piano player's eyes widened and then he laughed: “I'm impressed...you've really got things planned out.” He noticed Athrun turn a slight red in embarrassment and chuckled: “okay...okay...I'll help you take care of everything. It'll happen exactly the way you want it.” 

-One hour later, 5pm-

Cagalli was walking down the hall on her way to break up another dispute among the same two council members that had been arguing the other day. Just as she pressed the button on the side of the elevator, the doors opened and her eyes widened when they did. Inside stood Athrun in his Orb uniform, looking as gorgeous as ever. He appeared to be just coming back from an officers meeting as he looked slightly worn out. She looked him up and down and then turned a slight red when she realized she was giving him the eye. Truth be told, seeing him in that uniform only further fueled the fire raging within her. All she could do at that instant was envision herself doing extremely “suggestive” things to him. Seeing him standing there, with that tired look in his haunting emerald eyes made her heart skip a beat. She watched as she casually ran his fingers through his neck length navy blue hair, brushing his bangs from his eyes. This fully revealed to Cagalli, the sparkling emerald orbs in all their beauty as they then lifted up and took notice of the blonde staring intently at him. 

Athrun's inner self smirked devilishly as he thought: “Hmmm...I would love to know what's on your mind right now Cagalli.” 

In the meantime, Cagalli was finding herself unable to tear her eyes away from the sexy, blue haired Coordinator standing in front of her. She quickly turned away from him because at this moment in time her inner self was screaming: “Good Lord he's so goddamn hot I can't stand it!...Damn it!...I really wish there was nobody else in this building besides me and this gorgeous piece of ass...”... “I mean...grrr!...stop it Cagalli!”... “Don't let him distract you!” She turned her gaze back towards him and once again was finding herself becoming hypnotized by those beautifully enchanting orbs. The way he stared at her...it made her feel as if he could see into her very soul. The way he stared at her made her anxious...the way he stared at her made her feel as if she was being undressed by his eyes alone. The fact that he had the power to do something like that and not be aware of it both frightened and excited her. There was no denying that she saw him as the very object of her most forbidden secret passions and lusts. He was always at the very core of the apple of her most erotic fantasies.

As she sat there trying to brush all these suggestive images of Athrun out of her mind, he awoke her from her day dreamy state by asking with an amused smirk on his face: “You wanna go up...or down?” 

Cagalli instantly snapped back into reality and turned a slight red in embarrassment at what thoughts crossed her mind even just by his asking that question. She took a deep breath to compose herself and then replied as coolly as possible: “I need to go upstairs.” 

Athrun nodded: “Ahh yes...those two councilmen are arguing again. They really don't seem to see eye to eye on anything do they?” 

Cagalli sighed heavily in frustration and ran her fingers through her short blonde hair: “Are you kidding?!”... “Those two can't even get out of each other's way.” The elevator door then closed the two of them inside where they continued their conversation. 

Athrun chuckled a bit and agreed: “Yes...that's true...but sometimes...isn't not being able to get out of each others way...” He leaned over and whispered the rest of his sentence hotly in her ear: “...a good thing?” This caused the usual calm and cool Cagalli he saw during the meetings to jump back a few feet in flustered surprise. 

Athrun laughed lightly at her surprised reaction and apologized: “Relax...I'm just kidding.”... “I'm sorry I startled you.” 

Cagalli hissed, a hint of a blush dusting her cheeks: “Y-You didn't startle me!”... “I'm just...!” Before she could finish her sentence, she heard the elevator make a strange sound and come to an abrupt halt. By stopping so suddenly, it caused her to lose her balance just enough to make her fall right into Athrun's arms. Her inner self screamed: “What the hell!?...”... “What was that!?” She opened her eyes and noticed she hadn't just fallen into the handsome Coordinator's arms, but actually right on top of him on the floor...their lips inches apart. 

Athrun gazed up at her with curious, yet mischievous eyes and asked: “Do you intend on staying in this position the whole time?” He lifted his right hand up to gently run his fingers through her hair as he whispered devilishly: “Of course...I don't mind if we stay this way...I'm very good at holding my positions.” 

Turning scarlet red, Cagalli immediately leapt off of him: “A-Athrun what are you...?!” All of the sudden, the elevator took another bit of a jolt and nearly threw her against the wall. She closed her eyes in preparation for a painful collision, when she found herself instead colliding with the warm body of her red knight. He had thrown himself in front of her so that he'd be the one to take the hit against the wall. 

He looked down at her and asked worriedly: “Are you okay?” 

Cagalli nodded as she tried desperately to hide another blush. She was beginning to wonder how many times she'd blushed that day...it sure seemed like a lot to her: “I-I'm fine ...but what's wrong with this damn elevator?!” 

Athrun shrugged: “Who knows. It must be another malfunction. It's been happening on and off lately with this particular elevator. I remember getting stuck in here just last week.” 

Cagalli realizing that she was still pinned up against him; turned a slight pink and started to pull away. It was when she started to pull away that she felt his arms encircle her waist and pull her closer as he whispered with a slight devilish smirk on his face: “Where are you going?”... “I won't bite...unless...” He poised his lips over her neck and hovered there for a brief second before then abandoning that notion and looking her square in her amber eyes as he finished his sentence: “...unless...you want me to.” 

Cagalli felt her pulse begin to quicken to a dangerously fast pace as his smoldering gaze met hers. Her rational inner self tried to calm her down, but to no avail. The only side of herself she was hearing was the one who wanted Athrun then and now. Finally, she had been given the opportunity to attain the very thing that she had been desiring for three years now...three long years. This was her chance! There was nobody there to restrain her, to hold her back from ravenously tearing Athrun's clothes off and truly making him only hers. They were all alone just like they were on that deserted island when they first met, only this time they weren't looking at each other as though they were enemies, not even just friends...it was a deeper connection than that...and that is what drove her the most mad. Knowing how deep their connection was, but being held back...she didn't want to be held back anymore...she was a woman now, a woman who desired a man so much she'd put her life on the line for his happiness as she knew he'd do for her. There was nobody to tell them no...nobody to lecture them about responsibilities...nobody and nothing to stop them... 

Athrun was smirking on the inside, quite content with how this part of the plan was going, but he knew his limits and he also knew it wouldn't be wise to push her too far. However, just as he moved to pull away and say “just kidding,” Cagalli had violently shoved him right up against the wall and kissed him ravenously...hungrily. His innocent emerald orbs widened in shock...he hadn't accounted for that! Nor had he accounted for her skillful fingers that were already done unbuttoning his uniform jacket and were now moving on to his green dress shirt. His mind was reeling with all kinds of thoughts and images as his rational inner self screamed at him to pull away. Instead of panicking, the cunning Coordinator opted to take the road he less traveled. As she continued kissing him, he snatched the fiery goddess of victory's hands just as she undid the very last button on his shirt. She broke the kiss first just long enough to gaze into his hypnotizing, haunted green orbs. 

In one swift movement, he whirled her around and now she was the one pinned against the wall of the elevator. A devilish smile crossed his face as he whispered hotly next to her mouth: “My turn now.” Before she could even open her mouth to argue, his lips had already come crashing onto hers in what seemed to the amber eyed Orb princess, to be the most delicious and sensuous of any kiss he had ever given to her. A slight moan of satisfaction escaped the lioness's lips as Athrun's expert hands ran up the back of her shirt to caress the smooth, warm, silky skin of her back. He had been dying to do this for so long, and now that he was finally doing it...he found himself unable to get enough of her. He could faintly hear the soft sounds of the elevator music playing an instrumental version of Strangers in Paradise, which seemed to him to be strategically placed there; not doubt by Dearkka since he had been messing with the sound system last week. 

It was then that their little make out session began to further intensify. His hands were roaming nearly everywhere on her body, as were hers on him. He briefly tore his lips away from hers as he snatched her roaming hands and hotly kissed her palms before turning his attention back to her awaiting lips. She felt her Orb uniform jacket slide off her shoulders to the floor, and what seemed to be in the blink of an eye; she felt her shirt being slowly eased off her shoulders. She sensed that the shirt was falling to the floor as well, but she didn't care...her mind was hazy...all she could think about, all she could feel now was Athrun's hot, sensuous kisses on her bare neck and his warm and gentle embrace as he held her shirt in his hands which were at her back. Suddenly, they felt the elevator jump again slightly and start to go to the higher floor. Realizing that now the door could slide open at any minute, they broke away from each other, both flushed from head to toe, clothes and hair in a disheveled mess, and panting for breath. 

Athrun's rational inner self scolded him: “Damn it!...”... “Look what you did!” He glanced over at the blushing and shivering blonde standing there in just her uniform pants and her lavender lacy bra, and with a hint of an awkward blush on his face, he did the only thing he could think of to do at that moment. He quickly shoved her jacket and shirt in the briefcase she had placed next to her and draped his uniform jacket over her shoulders and then the elevator door opened to reveal the suspicious looking pair to the arguing councilmen and also to Cagalli's twin brother and Athrun's best friend Kira Yamato who was already trying his best to break the fight up. Athrun and Cagalli remained on the elevator as they received wide-eyed stares from the arguing bystanders. 

Kira's violet eyes widened as he asked curiously: “Cagalli...Athrun...what is!?....” ... “I mean...what are!?” He took a deep breath to calm himself down and out of over protective brother mode as he finally asked: “Cagalli?”... “Why are you wearing Athrun's jacket?” 

Athrun chimed in to speak for the embarrassed and tongue tied Cagalli: “She spilled something on hers. I gave her mine...so she wouldn't get cold.” He flashed a small smile and a wink in Cagalli's direction, which caused her to turn a slight pink. 

Kira raised a skeptical brown eyebrow: “Okay...so...now do you want to tell me why you're shirt is unbuttoned Athrun?” 

Athrun shook his head and replied coolly: “Nah...I think I'll leave that to that corrupt imagination of yours.”... “See you later.” As Kira was having his own big brother meltdown trying to figure out what went on between the two, Athrun made his exit, but not before whispering seductively in Cagalli's ear as he walked past her: “Next time...I'll take you higher.”


	4. An Officer & A Gentleman

-Country of Orb, May 17h CE 74. Location: Athha Estate. Time: 10am - 

 

Cagalli had been pacing back and forth in her room a great deal now. Not only were those two councilmen still at each other's throats, but she had another issue to deal with and his name was Athrun Zala. That whole scenario that had taken place in the elevator the other day was still very vivid in her mind. All of his flirtatious comments and seductive mannerisms that simply came natural to him; had pushed her above and beyond her limits of self control. The one comment that seemed to stick the most with her was what he said after they got off the elevator as he walked away. She couldn't get that seductive tone of voice out of her mind when he had whispered: “Next time...I'll take you higher.” Her face flushed a brilliant red just thinking about that. It made a shiver run down her spine the sexy way those words came out of his incredible mouth. She thought about how she'd practically jumped him right in that elevator, which caused her to smirk and giggle a bit: “I guess that surprised him as much as me given that look of shock in his eyes.” She glanced at Athrun's uniform jacket that she'd hung over her chair, expecting him to come back for it some time that day. She walked over to the chair next to her bed, picked up the jacket, and then hugged it tightly to her chest as if she were embracing Athrun himself, and in doing so; she caught a whiff of the delicious cologne he had been wearing the other day. She heaved a heavy sigh and then took a seat in that same chair with the jacket on her lap as she frustratedly ran her fingers through her short golden hair: “God...what's wrong with me?”... “I'm sniffing and hugging jackets now.”... “Do I really want him so much I've gone beyond words to express how I feel?”... “Damn it Athrun...where are you?...I want to see you.” 

Meanwhile, said Coordinator was pacing back and forth in his room on the other side of the estate. The events of the previous day still making his pulse race as wildly as it had the moment all of those things started happening. He remembered Cagalli forcefully shove him up against the wall and wreak unholy havoc upon his unsuspecting lips. Man oh man how he wished he had been more prepared for that kind of reaction. He was also very surprised with his own behavior that seemed to be becoming more and more devilish and seductive as the days of the week passed. He thought of a few sentences that had come out of his mouth the previous day: “I won't bite...unless... you want me to.”... “Next time...I'll take you higher.” His face turned a brilliant shade of red as he frustratedly ran his fingers through his short blue hair: “Damn it...I can't believe I said all those things. I'm starting to sound like a sex maniac.” He glanced at himself in the mirror. He was dressed in his Orb military uniform, but his jacket remained conspicuously missing. He remembered the circumstances involving the mysterious absence of his coat, which caused him to heave a heavy sigh as he continued to glance at himself in the mirror: “Maybe I am a sex maniac...but I can't help it. Any guy with eyes to see her would probably behave the same way.”... “I've got to control myself...I almost lost it yesterday, but if today goes as planned, then I can get it back.” A small smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth as he thought to himself: “I will most definitely redeem my self control with this part of the plan.” He took a deep breath, opened the door to his room, and started his long walk down the corridor to the other side of the estate where Cagalli's room resided. Step one of his plan was to retrieve his jacket, and if that went smoothly then the rest of the day would be a cake walk. While he was muttering reassurance to himself that everything was going to go well today, Athrun ran smack into the very person who happened to be occupying his thoughts: “Cagalli...” 

Cagalli felt her heart skip a beat when he said her name so innocently, which distracted her so much that she dropped all of the documents she had been holding. Her inner self cursed: “Damn it Cagalli!”... “You have an important meeting to attend in a few hours...you can't be acting like this!” She knelt down and reached out to pick up the scattered papers she had carelessly dropped, and just as she did so, she felt her fingers brush across Athrun's hand. 

Athrun smiled his usual warm and gentle smile, only this time his emerald eyes contained a hint of a mischievous glint within them: “Let me give you a hand with that.” However, instead of reaching for the papers, he lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it sweetly. 

Cagalli felt her face burn red hot: “A-Athrun...listen...umm...about yesterday...I was...”... “I mean...I'm sure Kira gave you a hard time.” 

Athrun shook his head and chuckled: “Nah...I bolted out of there before he even opened his mouth. I've been avoiding him for most of the morning, except for that one time at 9am during the officers meeting when he kept giving me funny looks.” He helped her gather all the papers off the floor and placed them carefully in her awaiting arms. 

Cagalli laughed a bit: “Yeah...me too...I was getting those looks too. God... he just jumps to the craziest conclusions. You know what he was probably thinking when he saw me with your coat on?”... She paused mid sentence, her voice slightly nervous: “He...He thought we were...that you and I want to...” 

Athrun gently tucked a strand of her short blonde hair behind her ear and whispered in it hotly: “ Have sex?” 

Cagalli felt her heartbeat quicken and her lower half tingle at the feel of his hot breath against her ear. Maintaining her self control, she nodded and replied in as calm a tone as she could muster: “Y-Yeah...that's it.”... “Stupid huh?” 

Athrun, gazing directly into her amber eyes, kept inching closer and closer to her until she was up against the wall, his lips inches from hers: “Everything I said the other day...do you remember?” He placed a quick, yet heated kiss on her honey colored lips, his tongue wrapping around hers as he took it deeper. He heard a slight moan escape her mouth and decided then to pull away and finish his sentence by whispering seductively in her ear again, that devilish smirk on his face: “Someday...I will make love to you...Cagalli.” 

Cagalli's eyes widened as she felt her face grow warm for what seemed to be the umpteenth time that day...and the lower half of her body was now tingling so much that if she didn't get away from him right now, she would probably have him right then and there. She wanted to pull away, her mind told her to...but the rest of her body didn't seem to be responding to her brain's request. She absentmindedly let her index finger trail across Athrun's lower lip: “Y-Yeah...I remember.” 

Athrun turned a slight red at her delicate touch as he helped her to stand up along with him, their bodies inches apart. He could hear people approaching them in the hallway, so he finished by briefly drawing her close and whispering in her ear: “We'll finish this later...when I pick up my jacket.” He broke the hug first and handed her the rest of her papers. 

Cagalli, a slight tint of pink on her face; nodded and relpied: “Ummm...yeah...yeah...okay...but I'm not sure when this meeting's gonna end...it could take awhile.” 

Athrun smirked playfully: “That's okay...I'll wait...maybe take an elevator ride.” He noticed Cagalli's face turn beet red before she quickly turned away from in an attempt to try and hide it from him. 

Cagalli, her face as red as an apple; stammered in a hiss: “T-That was a one time deal you know?!”... “So don't get any ideas!” She turned on her heels and stalked off down the hall in her usual manner. 

Athrun chuckled as he thought to himself: “No ideas huh?” A devilish smirk crossed his face yet again: “We'll see about that.” 

The rest of the day for the golden haired Goddess of Victory seemed to drag on as slow as it possibly could. The two bickering councilmen only added to the stress that was already building up inside her. She could no longer deny it...even though Athrun was constantly around her, she felt a want, a desire for him so great she couldn't seem to think straight...especially this day. The more the two councilmen in front of her argued, the more she wished she could be anywhere but there. It was noon time now and she sat gazing out the large bay windows of her office during her lunch break, aching to catch a glimpse of the handsome blue haired gentleman, but he wasn't out there. Her friend Miri, who sat in the room with her sitting on one of the sofas; noticed the distracted look in Cagalli's eyes and asked in a friendly tone with a small smile on her face: “Looking for something?”... “Or maybe...someone?”... “If it's who I think it is, then he's usually out there at around this time you know...out by the pool.” 

Cagalli heaved a heavy sigh and waved her hand dismissively: “Yeah...Yeah...I know that. I guess...I'm just bored.” She turned her eyes back to the paper work and sandwich in front of her and took a bite out of it as she reread the document in front of her looking for any errors. 

Miri shook her head and ran her fingers through her short auburn hair as she chuckled at the lovesick state her friend was in. She then took a glance out the same window Cagalli had been staring out of just moments before and her baby blue eyes widened at the sight in front of them: “Oh...my...god.”... “Cagalli...you have to turn around right now.”

Cagalli shook her head and waved her hand as she continued reading her paper work: “I already looked. I know he's not there...so stop teasing me about it.” 

Miri frustratedly walked over to Cagalli's chair and whirled it around so she was facing out the window: “Geez girl...take a break and revel in the beauty that...lucky for you...can be seen right outside your very own window.” 

Cagalli looked up from her sandwich and paper work in her hands. Her golden eyes instantly widened at the sight as she felt herself lose her grip on her sandwich as it fell to the floor along with the papers that resided in her other hand. There, right outside her second floor window; she has a perfect view of the pool and of the shirtless person stepping slowly out of it. There stood Athrun Zala in his black swim trunks, water dripping from his gorgeous blue hair and also slowly running off and dripping down his slim and well toned body. She watched, with her mouth agape as he casually ran his fingers through his wet hair and then threw a towel over his shoulders. He took a seat on a deck chair, placed his sunglasses on, and began to read a book he'd seemed to have brought along with the rest of his stuff. Her inner mind theater was going crazy at this point: “Oh god!”... “Look at that sexy body!”... “It's just begging me to get some honey and lick it off him...slowly.” 

Miri noticed Cagalli's face turn a slight red and could immediately tell what she was thinking in her dirty inner mind theater: “Told you it was worth your while huh?” She received no response from the golden haired girl sitting next to her, so she waved her hand back and forth in front of her face and giggled: “Earth to Cagalli!”... “Are you there?!”... “What are you thinking about?” 

Cagalli, still in a state of ecstasy and euphoria from the sight in front of her; responded with a dazed and day dreamy: “I'm thinking about this hot ass...” Her eyes widened and she blushed embarrassed as she caught herself before she could finish that statement and stammered loudly in embarrassment as she tried to cover up her Freudian slip: “I- I mean...!”... “This assignment that I need to get done before I get back in that meeting later.” 

Miri rolled her eyes, a small smirk on her face as she chuckled: “I see...so...” ... “What about this assignment then?”... “What are you planning to do?” 

Cagalli, back to gazing out the window hungrily at the luscious sight in front of her; responded with a distracted: “I'm gonna... let him put his tongue in all the right places...” Her eyes widened again at the suggestive comment that had just come out of her mouth for the second time that day: “I- I mean!... “I'm going to let him put his tongue on me in the elevator!”... “No!”... “I...I mean I'm going to!...”

Miri laughed out loud and covered her friends' mouth: “Relax...it's okay. I know what's on your mind, so you don't have to try and hide it from me.”... “You still have lots of time before the meeting starts up again, so why don't you go down there and get what you want.” She smirked and winked playfully at Cagalli: “Perhaps something sweet and tasty.” 

Cagalli felt her face turn a slight red again as she hissed in an embarrassed tone while she was rushing out of her office: “S-Stop it Miri!”... “You're teasing me again!”

Miri giggled as she watched Cagalli take off down the hallway: “Maybe I am...but then again...maybe I'm not...” She glanced out the window and smiled: “My job is now done...the rest is up to you...Athrun Zala.” 

-Meanwhile-

Athrun was enjoying his free time to himself since all of the meetings he had to attend were finished for the day. Not having any more stuffy meetings to go to for the rest of the day was really a great feeling...a feeling he wished he could share with Cagalli. It was at this point that he was beginning to have trouble relaxing the way he wanted to. His mind was on the golden haired princess who had to be in and out of meetings all day. When they'd been standing so close earlier, he had found himself having a hard time controlling his feelings. He actually felt kind of relieved when he'd heard people coming down the hallway, but at the same time he was also disappointed. He glanced up at the window where Cagalli's office was and noticed she was no longer there. He thought to himself: “She's probably back in that meeting already.” He heaved a frustrated sigh as he ran his fingers through his hair. It was then that he looked up from his book and noticed the very person he had been thinking about, who was now getting ready to relax in the hot tub on the other side of the pool. He pushed his sunglasses to the bridge of his nose, his emerald eyes widening, his face reddening, his pulse quickening at the sight in front of him. He watched as she slowly let her uniform top slide off, revealing a red bikini top. She then slid her purple pants off to reveal a pair of short swim shorts of the same color as her top, that showed off her strong and slender legs. Athrun could feel a nose bleed coming on, but managed to suppress it as she stepped into the hot tub. He smirked as he eyed her, his inner self chuckling: “She must've been watching me before. I knew I felt someone watching me...and now I see what she's trying to do to me...well...two can play at that game.” He placed his book down on the edge of his chair as he stood up to make his way over to the golden haired Goddess of Victory. 

Cagalli sat in the tub with her head tilted back and her eyes closed relaxing in the bliss that was her hot tub..the turbo jets working their special magic on her sore back and legs. Suddenly, she felt a gentle tap on her shoulder and a soft voice ask: “Mind if I join you hime-sama?” A slight smirk tugged at the corners of her mouth: “Yeah...sure...do whatever you want.” This was going just as she wanted it to...but little did she know Athrun had plans of his own. 

Athrun slid directly next to her in the hot tub, his sunglasses still resting on the bridge of his nose: “So...you in a bathing suit huh?” He took the sunglasses off and placed them on the ground behind him: “I never thought I'd be around to see this day.” 

Cagalli playfully punched his arm: “What would you rather see then?”... “Would you rather I sit in here naked?” 

Athrun's face instantly turned a slight red in embarrassment: “I...I never said that...you're putting words in my mouth...although...” He paused and looked her square in the eyes when he smirked devilishly: “Now that you mention it...it would be nice.” 

Cagalli's amber eyes widened and she gulped as she felt Athrun's bare shoulder brush against hers: “W-Well...forget it.”... “It's not gonna happen...not today.”

Athrun leaned closer to her, his lips inches from hers now as he whispered hotly: “Well...when it does...” He placed one of his most seductively long kisses upon her lips, then finished by murmuring against them: “I'll be waiting.” 

Cagalli turned a bright shade of red, not knowing how to counter that response, and stood up quickly to get out of the hot tub. She suddenly felt herself beginning to lose her footing and just as she was about to hit the pavement, she felt a pair of slim, yet strong arms wrap around her from behind saving her from what could have been a severe head injury. 

Athrun asked worriedly as he held her: “Are you okay?”... “You almost took quite a spill there.” He smiled and closed his eyes as he continued to hug her from behind: “I've been looking for an excuse to do this all day.” 

Cagalli felt herself begin to relax in his warm embrace, another blush creeping its way up her face as she stood there for a few more moments letting him hug her before trying to get away again, which resulted in Athrun losing his footing this time, causing him to slip and fall on top of her in a suggestive position. Her face felt so hot she thought she might be getting a fever as those concerned and innocent emerald eyes gazed into hers as he hovered over her, water dripping down his well toned chest: “A-Athrun...please...I need to get back . I have to prepare for the rest of the meeting.” 

Athrun, still hovering over her in that suggestive position; shook his head like a stubborn child who was getting his play thing taken away: “No...not again...I...” His eyes had a slightly hurt look within them when he said that and he began to feel his self control beginning to slip away again, only this time..he couldn't stop the truth from coming out of his mouth, so he blurted out everything he was feeling at that moment all at once: “I can't deal with these distractions anymore!”... “I love you!”... “I want to be with you!”... “If...If I have to wait for an answer for much longer...!” He looked directly at her with his intense emerald eyes: “...I think I'll go insane!”... “I know it sounds like I'm being selfish, but sometimes...I just...!”... “...want you all to myself.” He immediately turned a slight shade of red in embarrassment as he managed to pull himself off of her before they ended up doing the same stuff they had done in the elevator: “I...I'm sorry. I have to go. I'll pick up my jacket later.” He grabbed his book, sunglasses, and towel before he turned abruptly on his heels and walked away. Once he was out of sight, he leaned up against a wall, frustratedly ran his fingers through his damp navy blue hair, and cursed to himself: “Damn it!”... “Not again...I lost control again!” ... “What's wrong with me?!”

Cagalli still lay on the ground next to the hot tub, staring up at the blue sky, her mouth agape in shock as she thought to herself: “What the hell just happened?!”... “Did he just confess again?!” She slowly sat up and saw he had disappeared from her sight. She whispered as she gazed in the direction he had left in: “I want you all to myself too...Athrun.” 

\- Later on that day: Time: 2pm -

Athrun sat at the desk in his room back in his Orb uniform, minus his jacket of course; scolding himself for losing it earlier: “I can't believe I said all those things to her just because she mentioned that meeting. I might've just ruined the whole plan with that outburst.” He laid his head down upon his hands that rested on his desk: “What am I supposed to do now?”... “Can I really go on with this plan and continue acting this way?” He glanced over at the magazine that started all this and picked it up as he asked himself: “Is it good that I found this thing?”... “I guess this is my conscience's way of punishing me for reading her personal thoughts.” He shoved the small magazine in his pants back pocket and heaved a heavy sigh: “I suppose I should go see how that meeting is going.” It was at that moment when he was just about to step outside the room when Miri came bursting through his door, a worried look on her face: “Athrun!”... “You have to come with me right now!”... “It's Cagalli!...” 

Athrun turned pale as a ghost and nearly felt all the blood drain from his body and his heart leap into his throat as he exclaimed worriedly: “What is it?!”... “Is she alright?!”... “Did something happen?!”

Miri nodded: “She's fine, but something did happen. The two councilmen that had been arguing turned on her and now they're scolding her for being too distracted...by you.”... “Kira's doing his best to fend them off, but it's not working this time.” 

Athrun slammed his fist against the wall, emerald orbs radiating with anger: “Damn it!”... “I knew this would happen!”... “This is my fault.” 

Miri shook her head frustratedly and grabbed his arm, dragging him down the hall as she ran: “No!”... “No it's not!”... “Why should they make such a federal case about two people who love each other...who just want to be together?!” They paused just outside the meeting room door, where they could hear Cagalli arguing her hardest, but getting nowhere. Miri placed a supportive hand on Athrun's shoulder: “It's up to you now Athrun Zala. You can just give up, forget any of this ever happened, and continue to love her from a distance saying nothing...or you can go through with the plan you told me about.”... “This is your decision.” 

Athrun nodded and smiled: “Thank you Miri...for everything.” He then turned to face the large oak doors in front of him and violently kicked them open as if he were on a raid, causing a stir in the meeting room and shocked expressions from both Kira and Cagalli, and even their bodyguard Kisaka when he shouted angrily: “What is this an inquisition...?!”... “...Because if it is...I should have been called here as well since I'm the guilty one here!” He heard one of the two bickering councilmen scoff arrogantly: “Guilty of what?”... “This has nothing to do with you. This is about her responsibility and...!” 

Athrun flashed him a death glare so violent that it even made Kira take a few steps back: “Oh cut the bullshit!”... “Everyone here knows what this really is!”... “You two can't settle your personal differences, so you take it out on her because you don't think she'll fight back and frankly...I'm damn sick and tired of it!” He walked calmly over to Cagalli and grabbed her arm: “C'mon...let's get out of here...we'll go someplace quiet.” 

Cagalli,with a slight blush and a look of shock still on her face; stammered in a hiss: “B-But...I can't just leave!”... “I'm running this meeting!” 

Kira shook his head at his sister and then flashed a wink and a nod in Athrun's direction: “I'll take care of this Cagalli...I can handle it.” 

Cagalli hissed, amber orbs flashing angrily: “No you can't!”... “I have to!...” Before she could finish speaking, Athrun silenced her with the same seductively sweet kiss he had given her in the elevator, and then lifted her up in his arms, carrying her bridal style towards the doors while she was blushing and telling him to put her down. The other of the two bickering councilmen, who were both in shock over this whole scene; shouted: “Who do you think you are barging in here like this?!”... “You can't just take her!...”... “We're not finished here yet!”

Athrun, his eyes still in SEED mode; flashed them another malicious death glare and in his usual calm tone, and with just a hint of sarcasm; he stated: “Who am I?”... “You should know by now that I am Athrun Zala...and it's pretty obvious what I came in here for.” He looked them all square in the eyes as he finished his sentence: “I came for what's mine...for what I want right now. I love Cagalli Yula Athha and she loves me...so just shut the hell up and deal with it!” With that, he slammed the doors closed and took off with her still in his arms to his machine the Infinite Justice. 

Cagalli, her face still a slight red from what had just happened; hissed: “W-What the hell was?!...”... “Hey!”... “Where are we going?!” 

Athrun simply smiled sweetly and winked as he sat her on his lap and started his red mobile suit: “It's a surprise.”


	5. War For Two: Island Of Temptation pt. 1

-Country of Orb, May 18h CE 74. Location: Justice's Cockpit. Time: 10 am - 

 

Cagalli had now been traveling in the Infinite Justice all night and it was now already into the next day. She began to wonder where the heck he was taking her that was such a surprise and so far away. She also was amazed at his stamina to be able to pilot a machine all night without any sleep and she mentally smacked herself: “Duh Cagalli...he probably put it in auto pilot when he wanted to get some sleep.” She couldn't take this anymore...she couldn't take the silence...she had to know what the hell was driving him to go so far out of the way to simply give her a surprise. She began to tug at the blindfold he had placed on her at the beginning of the journey and hissed in his direction:”What the hell are you doing?!”... “Where are we going?!”... “I know you told me hours ago that it was a surprise, but damn it...I can't take the silence anymore!” 

Athrun heaved a heavy sigh and put the machine in auto pilot just long enough for him to smirk and place a loving and lingering kiss upon his Princess's lips: “I'm gonna need you to be quiet until we get there...trust me...you're gonna love what I have in store for you.” He tickled under her chin as he noticed a slight blush dust her face before she turned away with a mumble incoherent to the blue-haired Coordinator. He finally landed on the soft white sand of a beach and carefully helped Cagalli, still blindfolded; climb out of the cockpit. He then instructed her by saying: “Take off your shoes.” 

Cagalli heaved a frustrated sigh and did what she was asked. As she felt the warm sand between her toes and heard the waves crashing on the shore, she raised a curious golden eyebrow and asked: “The beach?” She felt Athrun, who's hand was holding hers; nod and before she knew it, he'd wrapped his arms around her body in a warm and possessive hug. 

Athrun smirked devilishly as he whispered in her ear: “Yes...but can you guess which one?”

The fiery goddess of victory suddenly felt her heart leap into her throat at Athrun's hot breath tickling the sensitive spot on her ear. She thought to herself: “There's no way it's the same island where we...” Behind the blindfold, her amber eyes widened and her pulse quickened as she declared in a murmur: “W-Where I...Where I first shot you?” 

Athrun chuckled and lifted one hand up so that his delicate fingers could trail ever so slowly across her now quivering lips: “Close...guess again. You've almost got it.”... “Where you first shot me and what else?” 

Cagalli felt her face burn bright red as he was now running his fingers through her hair. She couldn't take it anymore. Had he no idea what this was doing to her?! Her inner self screamed: “To hell with self control!” She then blurted out loud: “Where we first met damn it!”... “Where I!...” ... “Where I first!...”... “...fell in love with you!” 

Athrun's emerald eyes widened and his face turned bright red as he felt his heart skip a beat. It was the first time he'd heard her say those beautiful words to him and he'd had a nice little monologue all planned out for this occasion, but now...he found himself unable to speak. All he could do was stare at her...and the more he did that, the more he wanted her. He slowly eased the blindfold off her eyes and tossed it to the sandy earth. He gazed into those lovely, fiery amber eyes for a moment before cupping her face in his hands and bringing his lips to hers in a long, lingering kiss. He made sure he kissed her with all of his heart and soul...a kiss that she would never be able to forget...a kiss that would let her know just how much she meant to him...a kiss that would let her know that he'd do anything to make her happy. 

It was Cagalli who reluctantly broke the delicate kiss first: “H-How did you know I wanted to visit here again?” 

Athrun smiled warmly down at her: “I just thought that...maybe...if I brought you here...you'd be able to tell me your true feelings without any pressure.” 

Cagalli felt her face heat up slightly as she nodded and confessed: “Remember when you said... “Sometimes I just want you all to myself!”... “Well...I...” She nervously scuffed her feet across the sand as she finished: “...I feel the same way!”... “I just want you all to myself sometimes too!” 

Athrun softly smiled and placed his hand in hers as he helped her sit down on the soft sand: “I'm so glad to hear you say that...I...” He looked away for a minute, then turned back towards her and slowly lifted his head so that his innocent emerald eyes met her fiery amber ones: “...I was worried. For a while I thought I was the only one who felt that way. I thought that I was being selfish and that it was a selfish thing for me to want...but...to hear you say you feel the same...” He lifted her hand and briefly pressed his lips upon it in a gentle kiss: “...That makes me so happy.” He noticed Cagalli blush slightly in embarrassment and chuckled to himself: “I guess it's time I put this part of the plan in motion.” He eased his shoes and socks off and tossed them to the ground: “Wanna go for a barefoot walk across the beach and then maybe...we can have a little swim before we eat lunch.” 

Cagalli nodded and stood up, it was then that she nearly did a double take in shock at seeing Athrun throwing his jacket, shirt, and pants to the ground; revealing his well toned chest and the same black swim trunks he'd had on at her pool the previous day. She turned bright red and stammered in a loud hiss: “W-What are you doing?!” 

Athrun smirked in her direction and replied: “We are going swimming after this aren't we?”... “It would be stupid of me to jump in with that uniform on.”... “Why?”... “Don't you like what you see?” 

Cagalli, her face feeling as if it were on fire; hissed in embarrassment: “Y-Yes!”... “I mean...of course I do!...”... “It's just!...”... “...you started stripping out of nowhere and I thought!...” 

Athrun smirked devilishly and coyly ran his fingers through her hair: “You thought what?”... “That I wanted something else?”... “Something else like...” He leaned closer to her and whispered in her ear: “Sex?” 

Cagalli's pulse quickened again as if it were on a roller coaster. There was no denying it...that was something that she wanted...especially from him...but, she managed to fight off her urges again for the fourth or fifth time this week as she hissed embarrassed: “N-No!”...”I mean...oh never mind!” She quickly took off her uniform pants, jacket, and undershirt revealing her curvaceous body in all it's splendor, still wearing the bathing suit she'd worn to the pool the other day as she hadn't exactly had time to change before Athrun had decided to kidnap her. 

Athrun smirked as he responded to her little annoyed strip tease: “I like what I see.”... “I also like the fact that this is the second time I get to see this lovely sight in the span of one day.” 

Cagalli felt her face flush at that compliment and replied in as calm a tone as she could muster: “I got it from Miri yesterday. It was an early birthday present.”... “You do remember that today's my birthday...right?” 

Athrun nodded and smiled in response: “Why of course...that's one of the reasons we're here.” 

Cagalli raised a golden eyebrow curiously: “What are the others?” 

Athrun smirked mischievously over his shoulder at her and winked: “It's not time to reveal those yet.” He casually brushed his bangs out of his eyes and took her hand as they started their serene walk on the beach. 

During their nice, quiet stroll; Cagalli smirked playfully and kicked some water at Athrun, causing it to splash him across his back. Athrun shivered as the cold water hit his back, then he quickly turned around with a handful of water and threw it at the unsuspecting golden haired goddess of victory who was too busy reveling in her near victory to notice what he was doing. The splashing of the cold water across her chest caused Cagalli to shriek in response as she glared at him. 

Athrun smirked mischievously:You see...two can play at that game.” He chuckled at her angry and exasperated face and then suddenly noticed a droplet of water sliding down her neck. His roving emerald orbs became entranced by the slow moving droplet that was now torturing him by now easing down her chest, which was slightly heaving from her sudden surprise of being splashed. This was what drove Athrun crazy the most...the fact that she was seducing him by simply standing there. As he slowly approached her, the red knight known for his speed and agility, felt himself suddenly slip. He closed his eyes in preparation for a wet and sandy collision, but instead; he found himself cushioned by something soft. He slowly eased open his eyes and no sooner then he did, they widened in shock. He felt his face burn bright red, his heart skip at least fifty beats, and finally...he felt a tingling sensation in the lower half of his body. He had managed to fall right on top of Cagalli...his face buried in her chest. Athrun's inner self was rejoicing: “Oh hell yes!”... “Oh wow...they're so soft.”... “I wonder what would happen if I ...?” Athrun mentally slapped his dirty subconscious back into the oblivion it resided in and in a voice just above a whisper, he murmured: “So...soft.” 

Cagalli's face was now as red as an apple as she tried to get Athrun off of her: “A-Athrun?” When she noticed no response from that, she hissed loudly: “Athrun!” 

The dazed red knight's mind immediately snapped back into reality as he blushed and quickly lifted his head off her chest. Still hovering over her, he gazed down at her with innocent eyes and that shy blush she was so familiar with; he responded: “I...I'm sorry.” 

Cagalli turned her head to try to avoid the sight of his devastatingly beautiful eyes blinding her with their penetrating gaze...but it was no use. There was no avoiding it...and truth be told...she didn't really want to avoid it. She then noticed Athrun glancing at the position they were in and then flashed that same devilish smirk from the previous day in her office as he replied: “It seems we always wind up in this position whenever we're together...what do you think it means?” Before she could answer, she felt his delicious lips on hers in a deep, passionate kiss. His hands sliding up and down the curves of her body as they felt the waves crash upon the shore and creep up to dampen them. Athrun's sensuous kisses mixed with the salty water tasted like heaven on earth to her and she noticed him briefly smirk as she moaned slightly in response to his passionate kisses. It was a moment she wished would go on forever...and it probably would have if that big wave that approached them wasn't going to crash on top of them. Thinking quickly, Cagalli reluctantly broke Athrun's beautifully ravenous kiss just in time to push them slightly farther up the shore just enough to avoid a direct hit from the large wave. 

Athrun smiled up at his golden-haired savior: “Thanks for the save...” He sat up and whispered seductively in her ear: “I'll have to repay you later.” 

Cagalli flushed bright red for what seemed to be the thousandth time that day and nearly felt her heart stop at his remark as he had left her speechless for the first time that day. 

Athrun stood up and then helped his princess to her feet: “I'm gonna go get some towels. I stowed them away in the Infinite Justice.”... “That way we can dry off...and maybe...” He smiled innocently as he finished: “...we could go for that swim.” 

Cagalli raised a curious golden eyebrow and smirked: “Hey...didn't we just do that?” 

Athrun shook his head and smiled: “Nope...I know a better place around here to take you for that.” He noticed a slight blush touch her cheeks and he chuckled to himself as he winked in her direction and responded: “ Just trust me ...okay?” 

Cagalli nodded and watched as Athrun retreated back to the Infinite Justice to grab their towels. As she was brushing some of the wet sand off of herself, she noticed a slightly folded piece of paper on the ground next to Athrun's uniform pants and picked it up as she thought: “Hmm...Athrun must've dropped this.” It was then that curiosity got the better of her as she unfolded the paper and read to herself what was on it: “How Hot Is Your Man & How Good Is He At Seducing You?”... “Hey!”... “Wait a minute!”... “This is that quiz I took a few days ago!”... “Why was he carrying this around?”... “What was he?!...” Cagalli's mouth suddenly turned up in a devilish smile similar to Athrun's as she finshed her thought: “Ahh...so now I see what this is about...well...” She glanced over her shoulder at the unsuspecting red knight as he was approaching with the towels and a basket of food. Her inner self snickered mischievously, that devilish smirk still upon her face as she thought to herself: “...two can play at this game.”


	6. War For Two: Island Of Temptation pt.2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter takes place within the same hour as the last chapter, I just never indicated a time when I wrote it. lol

Cagalli kicked some of the soft, white sand around on the beach as she went over her plan in her head one final time: “Two can play at this game and I know his one true weakness.” She decided then to call her plan “Operation Counter Seduction” and smiled wickedly as she began to prepare for phase one. She bent down and took the sharp edge of a nearby broken seashell and sawed off the straps on her bathing suit's top...making sure it now was a comfortable bikini halter top. She did the same to the shorts that went with it, shortening the length; making it look like very colorful panties. She snickered to herself: “This is almost too easy. I hate to ruin a nice bathing suit like this, but this has to be done.”... “Nobody tricks Cagalli Yula Athha and gets away with it.” She examined her reflection in the crystal clear blue water and decided to run her fingers through her hair a few times to make it look untamed and disheveled. Also, for one of those added “shiver down the spine”effect the golden haired goddess of victory knew she'd have from him for this; she splashed some water on herself and then waded into it up to her waist that way he'd be sure to cave more quickly. She giggled mischievously to herself as she played around in the water: “When he sees me slowly emerging from the water...he's gonna want me so bad he's bound to confess what he did right here.” She glanced up and snickered to herself as she noticed him approaching with the food he'd promised: “That's right...come to me my precious prey. You have no idea what you're in for.” 

In the meantime, the blue haired knight, completely unaware of what torment was awaiting him; chuckled to himself: “I think she'll enjoy this part the most. She does love her snacks.” He smiled and called out to her: “Hey Cagalli!”... “Are you ready for my other...?!” His voice trailed off as he glanced up at the “Venus-like” image of Cagalli, that was slowly approaching him from out of the water as he finally finished his sentence in a soft voice that almost sounded like a whimper: “...surprise?” 

The fiery blonde cane sauntering up and bent down to take a peek in the food filled basket Athrun was now clutching for dear life in his hands to keep himself from losing his sanity. She eyed him curiously and asked: “Hey...whatcha' got in there?”... “It sure smells good.” She flashed a cute smile in his direction and then proceeded to try and sneak a peak at the surprise foods in the basket.

Athrun's face turned a slight red as he couldn't help but notice that he could see her...well...being a hot blooded man, any guy in his position would surely not be able to ignore them. Before he spoke, he took a couple of deep breaths and coyly pushed her greedy hands away from the picnic basket: “Uh-uh...no peeking. This is only half of the surprise...for the other half, we have to walk a little bit before we can have the food.” He noticed Cagalli make that pouty face that made him want to give her her surprise right then and there, but instead; he settled for simply chuckling at her: “It won't take that long...and we can eat as soon as we get there, but you have to promise me one thing.” He gently placed the basket on the ground and got up so close to her that she could feel his heart beat and the warm, bare skin of his chest pressing against hers. He tenderly ran his fingers through her hair and then let them trail briefly across her face as he leaned closer as if he were going to kiss her...then, just as he was inches away from her lips; he changed his course and whispered in her: “Don't get too close to me looking like that. I can't guarantee your safety around me if you do.” Cagalli's felt her face turn a brilliant scarlet as he pulled away, offered her his hand, and smiled as he said: “Come with me. I want to show you the other half of the surprise.” 

Cagalli, now finding herself speechless; responded to his hypnotic gaze by nodding and placing her hand in his. She silently cursed herself out as they walked: “Damn it!”... “I keep forgetting who I'm dealing with.”... “I greatly underestimated the new him.”... “This is the new, bolder version of him so just playing naughty won't phase him in the slightest.”... “Hmmmm...looks like I'll have to alter my strategy just a bit.” She suddenly felt her stomach rumble in response to the wonderful aroma of what was most likely to be a delicious meal; coming from the picnic basket Athrun was holding. It was then that she was struck with a brilliant thought: “Yes...that's perfect. If anything can bring the shy and predictable Athrun back, this will...and once that side of him is back, then a confession won't be far behind.” 

In the meantime, the cunning emerald eyed Coordinator glanced at the blonde next to him, who seemed to be smirking out of the corner of his eye. He shook his head and chuckled to himself: “Wait until you see what I have in store for you my princess. It'll be worth the beating I'll most likely receive from you when you find out I dropped that quiz on purpose.” He lead her right to the entrance of a very familiar cave, stopped, turned to her, and smiled: “I think you remember this place.” 

Cagalli's amber orbs widened in shock as she felt her blood pressure rapidly drop: “It's...it's where we first...spent the night together.” 

Athrun gently caressed her face, his smile brighter and more genuine then ever before as he added: “You mean...where we first began.”... “And where I first realized I was...” He placed a soft kiss upon her hand before finishing by saying: “...falling in love with you.” 

One look into those beautifully hypnotic emerald orbs, and Cagalli momentarily forgot her plan as she felt her heart skip a beat at those warm and wonderful words: “W-why did you bring me here?” 

Athrun smiled as if he were the big bad wolf who was getting ready to lead little red riding hood down the path of temptation and then devour her, and then nodded as he lead her into the cozy cave: “This is where we're going to eat...” 

Cagalli nodded and smiled in response and then exclaimed: “Yeah!”... “Alright...bring on the grub!”... “I'm so...!” 

Athrun didn't even give the poor goddess of victory a chance to finish her sentence as he placed a finger over her lips, and finished his sentence in a soft, yet seductive voice: “...and spend the night.” 

Cagalli's bright smile immediately disappeared as she felt her heart leap into her throat: “W-We're what?!” 

Athrun pointed to the warm fire and sleeping bags he'd already set up, smiled as he plopped down onto one, and motioned for her to sit next to him: “We're spending the night here...only this time...I won't tie you up...unless...” He eyed her devilishly: “...you want me to.” 

Cagalli turned beet red and hissed: “N-No way!”... “What sick thoughts are running through your head?!” 

Athrun simply grinned like a little child who had done something wrong: “Oh...none in particular. Just thinking out loud.”


	7. War For Two: Island Of Temptation pt.3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter takes place within the same hour as the last chapter, I just never indicated a time when I wrote it. lol

Athrun chuckled to himself as he watched Cagalli place herself timidly by the fire directly across from where he had chosen to sit. He motioned for her to come closer: "Hey...why are you sitting all the way over there?" "There's plenty of room right here." He patted the rock right next to the one he was sitting on to emphasize his point.

Cagalli reluctantly stood up, walked over, and sat where the handsome blue-haired Coordinator was pointing. The time she took to walk such a short distance seemed like forever to her as she was making sure to keep her eyes glued firmly to the floor because she knew that if she looked into those haunting emerald eyes, she would be a goner for sure.

While Cagalli was struggling with her inner self, Athrun flashed her another of his most dashing of smiles: "Before we eat, how about we play a game?"

The spunky blonde eyes him curiously: "What kind of a game?"

Athrun slid a little closer and whispered: "I was thinking...truth or dare." "I know how much you've been dying to get the truth out of me lately, so I figured why not make things a little more interesting for the both of us." He placed a gentle hand over hers and smiled sadly: "But if you don't want to, that's okay. I can always think of other "fun" things for us to do."

Cagalli turned a slight red as she could only imagine what kind of "fun" things this new Athrun had planned. She shook her head quickly: "N-no!" "I mean...truth or dare is fine..." She then suddenly grinned before she finished her sentence by saying: "...as long as I get to go first."

Athrun chuckled and nodded. He had to admire her persistence: "Okay...sure." "Go right ahead."

Cagalli sat there and thought for a minute, trying to think of what truth she wanted him to tell her, but the sneaky side of herself was telling her this Athrun might better prefer the dare she so desperately wanted to dish out to him. Her inner self rubbed it's hands together as it imagined all the unlimited things it could have him do. She nodded and grinned as she finally came to a decision . She then turned to the curious looking emerald-eyed boy sitting next to her: "Truth or dare?"

Athrun casually ran his fingers through his hair and smirked mischievously: "Hmmm...I'd have to say..." He brought his face really close to hers when he finished his sentence with the response: "Dare."

Cagalli's mischievous grin grew even wider as she declared: "Take your shirt off while I'm watching." She snickered to herself: "There's no way in hell he'd do this. I don't care how ambitious the new Athrun is, the old him wouldn't surrender his morals so quickly." She noticed his face turn a slight red and for a split second she thought she had him...but boy was she surprised when he suddenly smirked wickedly, pulled the shirt over his head, and tossed it to the ground right next to her feet.

Athrun chuckled in her direction: "That's it?" "Gee...and because it was you I thought you would come up with something a little more creative."

Cagalli felt her face once again turn a slight red before she smirked: "Oh don't you worry about that...I'll give you creative Zala."

Athrun grinned like the Cheshire Cat: "Well...you'll have to wait for your next turn because now it's my turn...hmmm...let's see...what will I have you do?"

Cagalli snickered: "You can only have me do something if I accept a dare, and who knows...I might pick truth."

Athrun smirked coolly: "Okay then...so I'll have to make this a good one then won't I?"

Cagalli casually leaned back against a nearby rock and mumbled as she munched on a piece of fried chicken: "Go ahead...do your worst." "I'm ready for it."

Athrun's grin grew wider and she could see a hint of mischief in those emerald orbs as he sat back and pondered a question he wanted to ask her.

The fiery princess of Orb could tell that he was betting whole-heartedly that she would pick the dare and she was also sure that the new him had come up with something extra for her to do along with this "alleged" dare of his.

Athrun finally spoke, that small smirk still visible upon his face: "Okay...I've got it." "Are you ready?"

Cagalli nodded as she continued eating: "Ready as I'll ever be." "Just ask the question already or all the food's gonna get cold before you even have a chance to eat any of it!"

Athrun chuckled: "Okay...here's the question." "Out of anyone you could possibly sleep with in our group, who would it be and why?" "If you can't answer truthfully, then you have to accept the dare I have prepared for you...and you can't say no to the dare."

Cagalli's turned a small shade of red in embarrassment at the question that her companion had just asked her. She had to answer truthfully, otherwise he would put her through a dare from hell. She could tell from the smug look on his face that he was indeed enjoying this, but she knew she had to wipe that smirk off his face somehow, and so...with a grin, she answered: "Okay...I'll answer truthfully."

Athrun nodded and chuckled as he thought: "I knew she wouldn't want to hear my dare...awww...and it was a good one too." "Oh well, I guess I'll save it for the next question and surprise her."

Cagalli sat there for a bit, the whole time gazing into his eyes in order to distract him a bit while she answered in her most seductive of voices: "Well...for a long time now...I've been having this recurring dream about someone in our group. In the dream he always shows up while I'm in the shower. I peek out from the curtains and notice him staring at me. I look away, shocked at first, and a little scared; but I then find myself meeting his gaze yet again. There's so much intensity in his eyes I feel like I can hardly breathe. The gaze grows even more intense as he approaches me, and once he's close enough to touch me; that's all he does...and the strange part about all of this is that I'm not afraid...I'm curious." Cagalli noticed Athrun turn a slight beet red, so she smirked to herself and decided to continue. However, before that; she sat up from the rock she was leaning against, and approached him slowly...crawling to him on all fours, amber eyes still fixated on him as she continued to tell her truth: "I don't stand there and wonder what the heck this guy is doing in here...instead...I think..." She stopped crawling when she got directly in front of him, plopped down on the ground, and leaned her head on his lap like an innocent child. She could feel his whole body slightly trembling as she kept up her story: "...what do I have to do to get him to touch me?"

In the meantime, Athrun's inner self was about to snap and he wasn't even sure yet if this erotic dream of hers was about him or not...but who else could it be about? He didn't have too long to wander around in his thoughts because no sooner did that cross his mind, then Cagalli placed a hand on his leg, still gazing intensely at him as she finished her truth confession by rising to a kneeling position and hotly whispering next to his ear: "What do I have to do to get him to touch me more?"... "This man who could satisfy me with just one glance. This man who makes love to me with only his eyes?" She then found herself trailing her fingers down Athrun's well toned chest and took notice that his trembling began to grow worse, so she smirked mischievously a little and asked again, only this time revealing who the person was: "What do I have to do to get you to touch me...Athrun?" She gently traced the fingers of her other hand across his bare chest, and just when their lips were inches apart; she smirked and pulled back: "There...my turn is done."

Athrun, his emerald eyes now as wide as saucers; was left in a complete red-faced, shaking, heart-pounding, and stunned state of awe as he watched her get up, walk back to her seat, sit down, and resume eating again as if nothing had just happened. When he finally found the words to speak, they came out in a slightly frustrated and embarrassed tone: "H-hey!"... "You didn't answer the question!"

The golden-haired goddess of victory simply chuckled in reply as she picked up a strawberry from the plastic bowl in front of her: "Of course I did."... "Don't be such a baby."... "After hearing that, the answer should be fairly obvious." She then slowly bit into the strawberry and licked the juice off her lips in the same seductive manner he'd used on her a few days before.

Athrun's heart began to start pounding hard again as he watched her slowly eat the fruit. His inner self screamed: "She's baiting you!"... "Don't fall for it!" However, he ignored it and instead asked her in a soft voice: "Do you really want to know what you have to do to get me to touch you more Cagalli?"

Cagalli abruptly stopped eating as her eyes widened in surprise from those soft, yet emotional words and she noticed him now slowly approaching her. The look in his eyes was the same as the Athrun in the dream she'd just described. It was a look of want and desire...a look she knew she would cave in for, but she couldn't let that happen...not yet. She had to at least get far enough along in her mini revenge quest to get him to say why he was doing this. She was sure that he too had a reason for taking this charade as far as he had, otherwise he wouldn't be trying so hard to make her lose control...or maybe that's what he wanted. He was so close to her now that she could feel his warm breath on her face. It was at this point that she realized she hadn't yet given him an answer to his question...what was she waiting for? Why was it taking so long for her to answer a simple question?

Athrun, who was now close enough to kiss the nervous and shocked looking amber eyed beauty in front of him; asked her again: "Do you want to know Cagalli?" He gently placed his hands on each side of her face and just stared into her eyes for what seemed like an eternity to her. He then flashed her a warm smile that almost seemed to melt her on the spot: "I got to hear about your dream and your answer to that question...so how about you ask me the same question?" ... "I have nothing to hide as far as this matter is concerned."

Cagalli, a bright blush on her face; nervously averted her eyes to the ground so she wouldn't be intimidated by that stare. She managed to studder with a mixture of annoyance and nervousness in her voice: "F-fine...same question, but I'm still going to ask if you wanna do a truth or a dare?"

A small smirk tugged at Athrun's mouth as he answered with a wink: "I'll do both."... "There's nothing in the rules that says I can't...is there?"

Cagalli, her face still tomato red; sighed heavily: "No. I suppose there isn't."

Athrun continued to smile coolly: "Whatever dare you ask of me I'll do, but before I do that dare; I want to ask you something first." He laughed at the puzzled look on her face: "I suppose you want the "truth" answer from me first though, so here it goes." ... "I didn't have a dream about this or anything, but I've known the answer to this question for quite some time now." He gently moved her face slightly closer to his as he continued: "Out of anyone in our group, if I could sleep with anyone...it would be..." He paused right as he was about to kiss her trembling honey-colored lips, and he smirked as he whispered: "You."

Cagalli felt her face heat up for the millionth time that day and she began to feel dizzy with so many emotions she didn't even realize she had. Athrun's scent, the feel of his arms around her, the way he touched her, smiled at her, stared at her, the way he teased her, worry about her, his shyness, his kisses, his...everything...she wanted it to be only hers. Without warning, she shoved him to the ground with her on top of him, and began kissing him passionately as she thought to herself: "To hell with self restraint!"... "Let's see if he cracks after this."

In between kisses, an awestruck Athrun managed to get out: "Cagalli...what...about...the...dare?"

The fiery golden-haired goddess of victory stopped kissing him long enough to smirk, which sent a slight shiver down Athrun's spine for a brief second before he smirked devilishly in return and asked: "Remember what I said the other day?" He then leaned closer and whispered hotly against her ear: "Someday...I'll make love to you. I want to make love to you?"

Cagalli felt her heart skip a beat as he reached up and gently caressed her face. She nodded quietly in response as he chuckled: "You knew I had read those questions the whole time...right?" He nibbled lightly on her ear, causing a shiver to run down her spine.

Cagalli blushed bright red and shook her head embarrassed: "No...not the whole time. The quiz fell out of your pocket when we were sitting on the beach."... "You really are a big klutz Athrun Zala...or maybe you're not...maybe you dropped it on purpose to play around with me, which would make you a smart ass."... "Either way, I'll still manage to get the truth outta you one way or the other because I can be just as bad as you've been you know." She placed a small kiss on his shoulder, then his neck.

Athrun muttered, red faced with embarrassment: "So I dropped it on purpose and I'm a smart ass...so what!"... "You...you just looked so beautiful I got distracted."

Cagalli's amber eyes widened and she smiled slightly: "Did you just say I looked beautiful?"

Athrun, still a slight red; delicately brushed a tress of her short blonde hair from her face and smiled warmly at her: "You always look beautiful. That's what I thought if I became what you wrote in the quiz, you'd see that..." He placed a soft kiss upon her cheek before finishing: "I could be the perfect guy for you."

Cagalli, her cheeks tinted a slight rosy color; laughed out loud and playfully punched his arm: "Seriously Athrun...are you for real?!" She, still hovering over him as he was pinned to the ground; leaned down and just when she was close enough to kiss him, she finished her sentence: "You already are the perfect guy. What's perfect about you is that...you aren't perfect. Didn't you read the answer to the last question?"... "That's what I wrote...see?" She pulled the quiz out of his pocket and pointed to the answer to question #10. Q#10: "If you could change anything about him, what would you change?" A: "Nothing."... "I love him just the way he is." The most perfect thing about him is that he's not perfect. Nobody's perfect, but it's the little things they do for you everyday that make your life worth living. That's what I like to think anyway."

Athrun read and re-read that answer and felt so happy and relieved he couldn't contain himself. He impulsively took her in his arms and began kissing her the way she'd kissed him just before.

Cagalli responded by letting her hands caress his bare chest, and as he placed gentle kisses down her neck, he then proceeded to un-hook her bikini top and let his series of hot kisses continue down her body until he got to her inner thighs, sweat dripping from his brow from the campfire burning next to them, he asked breathlessly: "Is it okay if I...?"

The amber-eyed lioness of Orb didn't even wait for him to answer, she; red-faced as ever; loudly replied in a tone mixed with excitement and frustration: "Oh god Athrun!"... "Stop torturing me and just do it!"

Athrun, his face slightly flushed; chuckled as he slowly eased her bikini bottom off, as Cagalli, at the same time; eased his bathing suit trunks off and then they began kissing and touching each other so wildly and passionately, that by the time it was all over, all Athrun could remember was feeling so exhilarated...so exhausted...and so...so...satisfied and good that he felt the dreamy smile plastered on his face wouldn't leave for a long time. It had been everything he had always hoped for. He smiled as he ran his fingers gently across the sleeping Cagalli's face as she snuggled her naked, warm body close against his. It was now 2 am and he was just about to drift off to sleep, when he heard his cell phone's voice message signal go off. The blue-haired Coordinator carefully reached behind him so he wouldn't wake up Cagalli, and listened to the voice mail. He heard Kira's voice singing in the message in a slightly irritated and annoyed tone: "You'd better call me back!"... "Call me back now!"... "You're not my brother-in-law yet, so if you did what I think you did with my sister I'll sortie with the Strike Freedom and beat your ass...I swear I will Athrun!" Athrun sighed heavily and shook his head with a slight chuckled as he shut proceeded to shut the phone off and throw it back in his backpack. He'd deal with his angry friend when he got back. Until then, he wanted to enjoy this wonderful moment. He snuggled close to Cagalli under the blanket he'd brought and drifted off to sleep along with his princess.

\- Meanwhile, back in Orb at the Athha Estate. 2 am -

Kira paced back and forth in Cagalli's office, the whole while staring at the phone waiting for his friend to call him. He muttered under his breath: "I swear...if he doesn't call me..." He then glanced down and noticed a magazine opened up on a quiz page that read: "Rate Your Mate. Is Your Man A Stud Or A Dud?" Kira's violet eyes widened as he noticed that it was a magazine addressed to Lacus: "Hmmmm...I wonder what she wrote about me?" He then sat down and began reading.


End file.
